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Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 





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HORACE LEONARD. ἸΟΝΈΒ, A.M. 
A THESIS 
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UNIVERSITY FOR THE DEGREE OF 
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The : 
Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 


Homeric Usage 


BY 


HORACE LEONARD JONES, A.M. 





A THESIS 


PRESENTED TO THE UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF CORNELL 


UNIVERSITY FOR THE DEGREE OF 


DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY 


1909 


























Φ 0.) 29 


᾿ 
CONTENTS. 
CHAPTER 1 (Fart One). 
Natural Objects. 
PAGE 
ἜΝ τ. a ee ἐροῦσι 
A. EXTENT AND MASS GRouP, ἸΥΘΕΒΙΜΙΥΕ... . -.. 9 
1. Place, quarter, region, shore, grove, thicket eee 9 
(a) Place, region. (b) Grove, thicket. 
2. Stream, water, bath, frost, dew, blood -.__-...-____. __-___ -_-- 13 
(a) Stream, water. (b) Bath. (c) Dew, frost, blood. 
ΠΟ τω TE ta το oN τυ 15 
4. Meal, dinner προς eS i Mi: bare Pa eta Yak Sle Si 16 
a RS REE Ee eR Re FO al ae ENS 
πο SE WAS τος OO he τος 17 
(a) Cloak, robe, girdle. (b) Veil. (c) Wreath, crown, head- 
band. 

THE Bopy GROUP ____ Seether ened eatin. OE 
1. Face, forehead, mouth, eye, jaw, cheek, chin, throat, neck____ 22 
(a) Face, forehead, mouth, eye. (b) Jaw, cheek, chin, throat. 

(c) Neck. 
2. Breast, lung, side, bosom, shoulder, back, Macivamee midriff, 
a a ee ae Se ee Ne ete ee 8 25 
(a) Breast, lung, side, bosom, shoulder. (b) Back. (c) Dia- 
phragm, midriff, heart, gall. 
Ft MLM AUR Se a τ sbaboek nal -ueateesth ics hor SO 
Ate INSTRUMENT GROUP cs eo hee 21 
δον; αὐτσοτ θεν ee ρον 31 
(a) Bow, sword, arrow. (b) Shield, sheath. 
ὩΣ Doomidatic Asticles gon ae ge ceed en titeas de, 38 
(a) Axe, brooch, goad, sickle. (b) Rule, anvil, ladder, mirror. 
3. Insignia of authority—Sceptre, wand_________._.-._.___-_____- 37 
wr Webicles and guvts Theredii gc). oe, τὺ Pa a 40 
(a) Chariot. {b) Rim, axle. 
Rew oven ang ΡΟ artsclen es oe τ  ρ 44 
(a) Chain. (b) Noose, net. 
TEE ORR ag ae PG 2) tg a ea τ τ Ὁ ee ay >. 
ΣΟ ΙΝ πόσοι gece s ec ae on eee tes 49 
RO ate oe eine Sas Retna hid στο ain Hs meee AS 
OES τ τ 2 00 τ ον te ae Ae ae ae 59 
MEG a rae eect dn gn teakibes oe τς a oY ste PD 
(a) Tent. (b) Chamber, apartment. (c) Cave, lair. 
RE aI ὅθε τον τ as ae og la εξ δ δὴ 


ii 


Contents. 
6. Cate; BOOK io A oe ee cr ee eet a aeen metal ee ae ot a 
6. Bed, CONCH Ss a τ a ae ee Rec cet aes 76 
+. Altar, foundation, pillars. Shes. τυ kt tpt onal 78 
5. POmp, Caskets Gee ey ee ee a eee sere 80 


CHAPTER I (Part Two). 


Abstract Nouns. 


tSMURDER DEATH co cto ole saeco eta Boe 83 
2.' POWER, DOMINION, AUTHORITY 5... -5-o-c0s2 χε τον 93 
3. MARRTAGK. WEDLOCK ἐς ρου Joka το κε ἐν χορ ee 96 
A. "OTHER ABSTRACTS 5. 74 a τοὺ εχ ρον τ ΟΝ 
(a) Of emotion, passion, affliction. (b) Distributives. (c) 
Of theft. 


CHAPTER I (Part Three). 


Studies in Mey es Ne ee pa τ 10 


CHAPTER II. 


The Pronoun. 


TIOMBR vac os ρος ρον ον τ ΠΝ ee 127 
τ (Pluralis Θοριδίδειθος,, το τ τ δ σὸν 128 
2) Pluralis Μοἀδϑθδε, τ ρον τὰν τ τὺ 
3: ΡΙΌΣΙ͂5. Maiestatis: 20000 πο ρος Pee ee ee ee ee 130 
RAGED λον eee πο τς τε ty νον 132 
1: AeRCh ΙΑ So oo cea τς eee οι pe eee ee 132 


The Plurales (a) Societatis, :b) Modestiae, (c) Maiestatis. 
2: Sophocies—thie same iJ 5 So eas bi ee ee eee eee 
3. Euripides—the same_____ Scie oy tea ea nl en ee ae 137 
4. Enallage of number in general_________ _-__ τ -__- 
(a) Thechorus. (b: Trimeter verse. 


CHAPTER III 


Nouns Referring to Persons. 


PIONEER AND EIN DAR 0 δ soba eee 
PReACeODe CAS oo ἀντ ee ee a Bar ee 142 


Contents. iii 


2. The Allusive Plural of πο | Se Ra eg ee OE ORE δῷ 
(a) Parent. (b) Child. 
3. Member of family in general____  - Πρ τ᾿ 155 


(a) Third person plural pronoun. 
(b) Masculine and neuter plural adjectives. 


4. The Allusive Plural of Reserve -.__- 2. οὃὕὃὉῳὐὃἦ Γ Γ0ῦϑΘ ῈἘ΄Ὄ στ ὃν 158 
(a) The criminal. (Ὁ) The dead. 
5.) OU ΝΟ PNUPONG. oo ei oo ce ec ϑ 163 


(a) Neuters in -μα, and adjectival substantives. 
(b) Abstracts. 
σου ei ed ky wd etna τος mange δος 168 








INTRODUCTION. 


The subject here considered has naturally received limited at- 
tention in the Greek Grammars. Kiihner’ refers to the more 
important uses of the poetic plural as follows: ‘‘ Die Dichter 
gebrauchen den Plural oft um den Ausdruck zu amplifizieren 
(Pluralis Maiestaticus),’’ adding such words as σκῆπτρα, θρόνοι, 
μέτωπα, νῶτα, θάνατοι, τοὺς τεκόντας (patrem). 

Brugmann’ briefly mentions the matter, saying: ‘‘ Der Plural, 
um das Komplizierte der Erscheinungsform einer Sache anzudeu- 
ten, findet sich besonders bei Ausdriicken fiir Massiges wie κρέα, 
aivata..... , fiir Gerate und Baulichkeiten, wie τόξα, ἅρματα, 
δώματα. .... , fiir Ortlichkeiten wie ἀκταί, nioves. . 2... , fiir Kor- 
perteile wie προσώπατα, vara, στήθεα... .. , fiir Veranstaltungen, 
Wie γάμοι, ταφαί, rado..... Zwischen diesem Gebrauch des 
Plurals und dem des zugehorigen Singulars wurde ein Unter- 
schied empfunden, der die Dichter, namentlich die Tragiker, 
veranlasste, die pluralische Form εἰς ὄγκον τῆς λέξεως zu bevor- 
zugen und sie auch da zu verwenden, wo man sich in der gewohn- 
lichen Umgangssprache des Singulars bediente (sog. Pluralis 
maiestaticus): z. B. μάχαιραι, σκῆπτρα, Opdvo.” 

Gildersleeve* under the head of ‘‘ Pluralis Maiestatis ’’ classifies 
δόμοι, μέγαρα, γάμοι, ταφαί: ‘‘ The use of the plural often gives the 
idea of fulness.’’ ; 

But Sasse* has chosen to employ the term in reference to the 
pronoun ‘‘nos’’ as found in imperial edicts, in the utterances of 
those in authority. So too the expression is employed by 
Gerber’, Volp®, Draeger’, Buttmann® and others. ‘There is cer- 
tainly no uniformity in its use either in general works or com- 
mentaries. Apparently it does not occur in all Classical Latin 
literature, but was a late invention of some Jewish Bible com- 





1Griechische Grammatik, Vol. I, p. 17 f. (1898). 

?Griechische Grammatik*, Miiller’s Handbuch, II, 1, p. 369 f. 

3 Greek Syntax, p. 26, ἢ 52. 

*De numero plurali qui vocatur maiestatis (1889). 

5 Die Sprache als Kunst, Vol. I, p. 502 (1885). 

®De usu numeri pluralis Aeschyleo et Sophocleo (1888). 

? Historische Syntax der lateinischen Sprache, Vol. I, p. 26 (1878). 
*Grammar of the New Testament Greek (Trans.) p. 131 (1880). 


2 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


mentator’ who desired a special term for the Hebraic plurals 
eldhim, adénim (God, Lord), the plural being so used by the 
Hebrews out of reverence for the Deity’, as was thought. 

Ember’, however, ignores the ‘‘ Pluralis Maiestatis,’’ choosing 
instead ‘‘Pluralis Intensivus’’ to designate a wide class of 
Hebraic plurals. 

As will appear later, such an appellation can hardly express 
the force of Aristotle’s ὄγκος ; nor is it natural to make it em- 
brace such uses as those referred to by the Pseudo-Longinus 
(below), together with the various ones so classified by gram- 
marians and commentators. 

In the interest of clearness, the term should be limited at least 
to (1) the first person plural pronoun as employed by dignitaries ; 
(2) plurals used in reference to a royal personage, ‘as 6. ρ΄. δεσπόται, 
κύριοι, κοίρανοι ; and (3) plurals of royal appurtenances, as θρόνοι, 
σκῆπτρα. But inasmuch as there is a ‘‘Pluralis Modestiae’’ in both 
Greek and Latin which is applied to the plural pronoun when 
used for the sake of modesty, a similar restriction of the ‘‘ Plu- 
ralis Maiestatis’’ is likewise desirable. In this way confusion is 
entirely avoided, and the term finds its most appropriate appli- 
cation. 

As for the plural nouns referring to but one person, the term 
Allusive is a fitting general term, which will include what we 
shall here call the plural of Respect ( e. g. δεσπόται), of Relation- 
ship (6. ρ΄." ot τεκόντες, τέκνα, οἱ φίλοι) and of Reserve (e.g. ot 
φονεῖς, οἱ κατὰ γῆς). ὶ 

The plural of other nouns, whether concrete or abstract, often 
carries with it the idea of ὄγκος, fulness; it has a poetic force 
and mission. 





'So Reuchlin, quoted by Maas, Archiv, Vol. 12, Ὁ. 481. 

* But cf. Tobler, Zeitschrift fiir Volkerpsychologie, Vol. 14, p. 416, where 
the plural forms are explained as not originally concrete: ‘‘El6him, 
Gottheit (‘himmlische Machte’) im Gegenteil zu dem spatern streng mono- 
theistischen Jahveh, Jehova’’; also: ‘‘ Addnim, Inbegriff der Herrschafts- 
rechte, als verkOrpert in einer Person gedacht wie Ital. podesta (potestas).’’ 

*The Pluralis Intensivus in Hebrew, Johns Hopkins Dissertations, 1905. 

*Though the term was invented for just such a class of words, yet asa 
rule they are not even included under that head. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 3 


Aristotle is the first, so far as is known, to call at- 
tention to the subject. In his Τέχνη Ῥητορικήϊ he says: 

εἰς ὄγκον δὲ τῆς λέξεως συμβάλλεται Tdde.... . καὶ τὸ ἕν πολλὰ 
ποιεῖν, ὅπερ οἱ ποιηταὶ ποιοῦσιν᾽ ἑνὸς ὄντος λιμένος ὅμως λέγουσι 


λιμένας εἰς ᾿Αχαϊκούς ἢ 


δέλτου μὲν aide πολύθυροι διαπτυχαί.ὃ 

The latter passage should be eliminated at once from con- 
sideration. Hermann and Paley, whom Cope‘ quotes ap- 
provingly, observe that Aristotle mistook Euripides’ meaning : 
for the epithet πολύθυροι shows that the plural means the several 
layers of the tablets and only in case the poet had written 
δέλτοι would he have taken the liberty Aristotle ascribed to him. 
Strikingly enough the plural of the same word is used referring 
to the same δέλτος in the same tragedy, verse 787: 

τάδ᾽ ἐστὶ τἀν δέλτοισιν ἐγγεγραμμένα. 

In this plural there is ὄγκος ; so alsoin the former phrase, where 
the plural affords a harbor with widening and picturesque 
prospect. 

The Pseudo-Longinus,’ also, touches upon the rhetorical value 
of certain plurals as follows: 

GAN’ ἐκεῖνα μᾶλλον παρατηρήσεως ἄξια ὅτι ἔσθ᾽ ὅπου προσπίπτει τὰ πληθυν- 
τικὰ μεγαλλορρημονέστερα, καὶ αὐτῷ δοξοκομποῦντα τῷ ὄχλῳ τοῦ ἀριθμοῦ" 
ταῦτα παρὰ τῷ Σοφοκλεῖ τὰ ἐπὶ τοῦ Οἰδίπου" 

Sehr ers ὦ γάμοι, γάμοι, 
ἐφύσαθ᾽ ἡμᾶς καὶ φυτεύσαντας πάλιν 
ἀνεῖτε ταὐτὸν σπέρμα, κἀπεδείξατε 
πατέρας, ἀδελφούς, παῖδας αἷμ᾽ ἐμφύλιον 
νύμφας, γυναῖκας, μητέρας τε χὠπόσα 
αἰσχιστ᾽ ἐν ἀνθρώποισιν ἔργα γίγνεται. 





1 Chapter III, ὃ 6. 

2 Eurip. Frag. Adesp. 83. 

ἈΤ Nl fe 

4 Aristotle, Vol. III, p. 67, Cambridge, 1897. 
5 Περὶ ὑψους, chapter XXIII. 

®OT. 1403-1408. 


4 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


πάντα γάρ ταῦτα ev ὄνομά ἐστιν Οἰδίπους. ἐπὶ δέ θατέρου ᾿Ιοκάστη, 
ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως χυθεὶς εἰς τὰ πληθυντικὰ ὁ ἀριθμὸς συνεπλήθυσε καὶ ἀτυχίας. > 
In the same connection the rhetorician alludes to 

ἐξῆλθον “Exropés τε καὶ Sapmnddves,' 
and to a similar use of the plural in Plato.’ 

Now, merely to say that Greek Tragedy employs the plural 
for the sake of ὄγκος seems entirely inadequate ; it would be 
unjust to Aristotle’s meaning and to all the principles involved ; 
for λιμένες is not a parallel case to (4. g.) κύριοι, φόνοι. Aristotle 
obviously did not have the following passage in mind : 

iva τε δόρατα μέμονε δάϊα 

δ᾽ ἐμὸν ὄνομα τᾶσδ᾽ Αὐλίδος 

στενοπόροισιν ὅρμοις,“ ι 
where if one harbor alone is meant ὄγκος and στενοπόροισιν would 
be contradictory. Here, as often in Euripides, the plural seems 
conventional *; and it may be said that metre alone often directs 
Enallage.® 

As Aristotle, so the Pseudo-Longinus had in mind a particular 
class of words, such as γάμοι above mentioned ; their passing 
comments, meant to be neither general nor universal, should not 
be pressed too far. The latter does not fail to see that the 
plural often serves a poetic, a dramatic purpose; and that the 
reverse process may have the same object: ‘‘In each case the 
ornamental effect is the same; the unexpected change from 
singular to plural is a mark of emotion.’’ ® 

So far as I am aware, antiquity presents no further literature 
on the subject; neither has a part of the plural uses been 





1 Soph. Frag. Adesp. 289. 
2? Menexenus 245 D. 
3]. T. 1495-1497. 
*Note e. g. Alc. 165: 
ἐκ δ᾽ ἑλοῦσα κεδρινῶν δομῶν (chest) ἐσθῆτα. 
δ See Part Three of Chapter I. 
6 Περὶ ὕψους, Chapter XXIV: 
αἴτιον δ᾽ ἐπ’ ἀμφοῖν τοῦ κόσμου ταὐτὸν οἶμαι: ὅπου. τε γὰρ ἑνικὰ ὑπάρχει 
τὰ ὀνόματα, τὸ πολλὰ ποιεῖν αὐτὰ παρὰ δόξαν ἐμπαθοῦς. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 5 


treated for all Tragedy nor have all the uses been treated for a 
part of Tragedy." : 

Consequently it has seemed worth while to investigate with 
fair degree of completeness the representative uses of the poetic 
plural. It aboundsin Greek Tragedy and is in fact a marked 
characteristic there. Is it a creation of Tragedy? Or did it 
receive impulses from earlier sources ? 

Homer is not only a great fountain source of subject matter 
for Greek poetry, but traces of Homeric influence in forms and 
diction are more far-reaching than one might suspect. This in- 
fluence is clearly shown in Chapter I, where so many uses of the 
plural for the singular seem.to be nothing more than Homeric 
reminiscences. The same causes that produced analogous for- 
mations there, operated in Tragedy to effect plural uses of words 
which were foreign to Homer. And so it is the purpose of this 
dissertation to trace out in Homer, so far as they occur, the uses 
of the poetic plural as found in Tragedy, and to show the 
energetic progression of the plural tendency in the latter—from 
Aeschylus to Euripides. 

This purpose affords an opportunity in the case of nouns re- 
ferring to natural objects and of abstract nouns to investigate the 
pluralia tantum of Homer and\other words whose plural occurs 
for the singular there, insofar as they appear in, or influence, the 
forms of Tragedy ; to show the influence of analogy in the 
transition of kindred words fromsingular to plural ; to see where 
the plural presents a fuller concept’ or even a different one, and 
where the plural is expressive of poetic feeling®; to show that 
metrical convenience has exercised an important influence for 
the plural in Tragedy, as also in Homer ; and that in some cases 
the plural is hardly more than a mere convention—especially to 
Euripides. 





1The separate works on different phases of the subject and for certain 
portions of Tragedy are mentioned later. 

? As mentioned by Aristotle (see p. 3). 

5 As suggests Pseudo-Longinus (see Ὁ. 3 f.). 


6 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


As for the plural pronouns of the first person, the same uses 
occur in Homer as in Tragedy—rare in the former, but in the 
latter common and often serving a dramatic purpose. 

The poetic plural alluding to one individual—Chapter III—is 
of rather frequent occurrence, but aside from ἃ so-called 
‘‘generalizing plural,’’ common to the prose and verse of many 
languages, its use falls within lines pretty well defined. In not 
a few instances where the plural occurs, only one person can be 
thought of ; in such cases at least the Allusive Plural is ap- 
parently confined to Tragedy. As will be seen, it serves a pur- 
pose not only poetic but at times peculiarly dramatic. 

The term Poetic Plural is here used not merely of plurals con- 
fined to poetry,—though such is usually the case,—for that would 
exclude much that occurs in the poetic diction of Plato or Isocra- 
tes. The word θάνατος stands in prose for the death of one or 
many, but Plato has the plural in the following passage’ : 

ἢ οὐκ οἶσθα ὅτι τὸ μὴ πειθόμενον (1. 6. τοὺς πειθομένους) ἀτιμίαις τε 


καὶ χρήμασι καὶ θανάτοις * κολάζουσιν. 


Isocrates encroaches much on the field of poetry, especially in 
the use of abstract nouns in the plural for the sake of avoiding 
hiatus.* 

Again, such a restriction would preclude a τοὺς παῖδας when it 
refers to but one child, for Lysias* so uses it. Such plurals of 
singular meaning took their origin, no doubt, in legal 
phraseology, as will be seen in Chapter III. They, like the 
Plurals of Modesty and Majesty, are often utilized in Tragedy 
for a distinct purpose—they have a mission there. "The Poetic 
Plural,® then, will apply here to plurals for which one would 





1 Republic §492, D. Cf also Antiphon 1, 28. 

? The plural stands under the influence of ἀτιμίαις and χρήμασι ; and a num- 
ber of persons are involved. 

3 Cf. Gildersleeve, op. cit., p. 21. 

AO I, δὰ; 

δ Τί was intended to treat also the Poetic Singular, which would be an in- 
teresting task, but it must be postponed owing to the limits imposed. I re- 
fer to such poetic singulars as στάχυς, ὄμμα, δόναξ, δόρυ, δάκρυ, δάκρυον, κῦμα. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 7 


more naturally expect the singular in ordinary Attic prose,— 
such as serve a poetic or dramatic purpose or both. 

The special works pertaining to the subject should receive 
particular mention. For the study of the Homeric plural the 
thesis of Juhl’ is singularly incomplete for our purpose, touch- 
ing as it does only a comparatively few words, as well as ignoring 
metre and other important considerations. His work has there- 
fore been of little value ; and it has been necessary to resort to 
the Homeric text, through Gehring’s Index and Ebeling’s Lexi- | 
con, for the information desired. 

Volp’, for Aeschylus and Sophocles, and Kummerer,’ for 
Sophocles and Euripides, provide excellent material for com- 
parison. ‘The former has been useful in the brief treatment of 
pronouns, and of nouns referring to persons. ‘The latter includes 
only abstract nouns and those pertaining to natural objects. 
Neither deals with the rhetorical or dramatic value of the 
plural, nor does either take into account the question of metre. 
Again, their studies have no proper perspective in that Homeric 
usage does not appear in the background. 

It would be entirely without the scope of this dissertation to 
take into consideration the admirable work of J. Schmidt* on 
the Indo-European neuter. He regards the neuter plural 
(in -a) of the descendant languages as originally singular and 
feminine.° But Greek Tragedy is dependent largely on Homer ; 
and we are concerned merely with what is found there. Even 
if Schmidt’s thesis be accepted, the frequent occurrence of the 





1 De numeri pluralis usu Homerico, Halle, 1879. 

? De usu numeri pluralis Aeschyleo et Sophocleo, Marburg, 1888. 

’Uber den Gebrauch des Plurals fiir den Singular bei Sophokles und 
Euripides, Programm XIX—XX, Klagenfurt, 1869-70. 

*Die Pluralbildungen der indogermanischen Neutra, Weimar, 1889. 

5 Striking reminiscences of this he finds in Homer and elsewhere—e. ρ΄. 
T 268 χρυσὸς yap ἐρύκακε, δῶρα θεοῖα ; HZ 238, δῶρα δέ τοι δώσω καλὸν θρόνον, 
ἄφθιτον αἰεί ; and Vergil’s Aeneid VIII, 729, per clipeum Vulcani, dona 
parentis. This theory explains the neuter plural subject of the singular verb. 
in Greek ; ultimately various plurals of Homer are traced to feminine 
singular nouns, as those of symmetrical parts of the body, ¢. g. πρόσωπα. 


8 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


plural adjectives along with such Indo-European feminines 
shows that in Homer’s time the singular notion was lost or faint.’ 
Brugmann’ speaks approvingly of Schmidt’s theory. 

It remains to mention the recent work of Witte,® which did 
not reach my hand till the material had been gathered and in- 
dependent conclusions reached as to the influence of metre 
(‘‘Verszwang’’) upon the shifting of number in poetry. He 
treats in detail the operation of this influence in Homer (to 
which the work is chiefly devoted) and also offers valuable studies 
for Tragedy, to some of which reference is made at the proper 
place.‘ His work, however, applies only to Chapter I of this 
dissertation. 








1 Indicative of this, too, is the appearance of singular forms side by side 
with the -a form of the plural. Cf. πρόσωπον, πρόσωπα ; but note that a form 
προσώπατα also appears (see p. 23). 

?Grundriss- der vergleichenden Grammatik der indogermanischen 
Sprache, Vol. II, p. 682, Strassburg, 1892. 

$Singular und Plural—Forschungen iiber Form und Geschichte der 
griechischen Poesie, Teubner, Leipsic, 1907. - 

* The citations in this work are numbered according to the following 
editions : Homer and Sophocles—Dindorf ; Aeschylus—Weil ; Euripides— 
Nauck ; Tragicae Dictionis Index—Nauck. The readings adopted how- 
ever are independent of any single edition. Unless some specific note to 
the contrary is given, the ms. authority is followed where the reading per- 
taining to the subject in hand is disputed. 


CHAPTER TI. 





PART ONE. 





NATURAL OBJECTS. 
| A. 
Extent and Mass Group, Indefinite. 


᾿ Mention is here made of a large class of nouns whose plural 
gives a sense of indefiniteness, vagueness—suggesting usually 
the parts that go to make up the whole. 


I. 
PLACE, QUARTER, REGION, SHORE, GROVE, THICKET. 


(a) Place, region. 
The most frequent Homeric words are ὄχθαι, jidves (Attic 
yoves), ἀκταί, λιμένες. ‘The following figures show the persistence 
in general of Homeric influence : 






































Homer | Aeschylus | Sophocles _ Euripides 
Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. Sing. | Plur. 
ὄχθαι 3 13 Wen: 2 ο 2 ο Ι 
| 
ἠόνες 6 6 | ο Ι ο ο ο 2 
ἀκταί 14 5 5 7 14 5 15 25 
λιμένες 25 9 3 ο 5 Ι 9 5 
(1). ὄχθαι". 


Cf. Δ 487, ἡ μέν τ᾽ ἀζξομένη κεῖται ποτὰμοῖο παρ᾽ ὄχθας, with Ant 
1132, Νυσαίων ὀρέων Κισσήρεις͵ ὄχθαι. 

In the latter case the word probably appears in an original 
meaning—‘‘ hills,’’’ and therefore is not dualistic in origin. 





1 Prom. 810, Sept. 392 ; Ant. 1132 (ch), Phil. 726 (ch) ; Hel. 491. 
2 Cf. Ellendt, Lexicon Sophocleum, Berlin, 1872. 


10 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


(2). qoves.’ (3). ἀκταί (4). λιμένες :-— 

The lone plural use in Sophocles’ is probably a true one. In 
view of the quotation from Aristotle'—Aipévas εἰς “Axaixods—note: 
the appearance of the word in Ψ 745: (For ingenious Phoenicians 
wrought the cup, brought tt over the sea), 


στῆσαν δ᾽ ἐν λιμένεσσι Θόαντι δὲ δῶρον ἔδωκαν," 


of but one harbor. In such an isolated verse, the long form of 
the dative was obviously convenient for the poet, while at the 
same time the plural involves the poetic (ὄγκος) notion.® 

A large number of words poetically employed in the plural 
and to be explained as analogous to the above are found in 
Tragedy, though not in Homer." 






































Homer Aeschylus Sophocles | Euripides 
Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
ὅρμοι 3 ο 3 ο 3 ο I 2 
αἰγιαλοί 4 ο ο ο oO ο I I 
pyypives 16 ο ο ο ο ο oO I 
κόλποι 14 18 4 Ι Ι Ι ο 6 
(5). ὅρμοι. 


To be compared are στενοπόροισιν ὅρμοις" and Δωρίδος ὅρμον αἴας. 
(6). αἰγιαλοί. "ἢ 





lAgam. 1159; Or. 994 (ch), Tro. 826 (ch). 

2 Cf. v 98, ἀκταὶ ἀπορρῶγες. . . ., προβλῆτες, where the plural means. 
rocky, projecting parts. 

5 Phil. 936. 

*See Introduction, p. 3; also chapter on metre. 

5 Cf. also ὃ 846, ν 96. 

6° Cf. definition of plural—‘‘inlets,’’ ‘‘bays’—in Autenrieth’s Homeric 
Dictionary (trans. Keep), 1904. 

Τ᾿ Excepting πεδία and κόλποι mentioned in table. 

8 7. δ. once only in this sense—meaning gulfs in general. 

91 A. 1497 (ch). 

0Hec. 450. 

“Sing.—I Τὶ 425 ; plur.—I A. 210 (ch). 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. II 


(7). bnypives. Note the lone use in Tragedy, IT. 253: 
ἄκραις ἐπὶ ῥηγμῖσιν ἀξένου πόρου. 

(8). κόλποι. 

In Homer the plural is used of one bosom in I 570; but the 
plural in the senseof gulf, ε 52, is a true one, asalso in Pers. 539. 
Ant. 1121, Δηοῦς ἐν κόλποις, z. 6. the plain of Eleusis, or perhaps 
the bay of Eleusis. 

Euripides has only the plural.’ 

(9). μυχοί᾽ presents interesting poetic variations : 

Homer M 23, (ἴχθυες) φεύγοντες πιμπλᾶσι μυχοὺς" λιμένος εὐόρμου. 
Tro. 84, πλῆσον δὲ νεκρῶν κοῖλον Εὐβοίας μυχόν. I A. 660, ὡς πολὺν 
ἀπῆσθα χρόνον ἐν Αὐλίδος μυχοῖς. 








Homer Aeschylus Sophocles | Euripides 














‘Sing Plur. ‘Sing. Plur. ‘Sing. Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
| ge rao 
: | 
(10) τόποι Yo ο 8 Δ 5 15. Ue 3 4 
({πῈ χῶροι, TS Ja Re Sn leon Oa ce Oe 6: 9 τα 
(a) ete | 30 | o | o | 1 | eho |.s | 2 
(13) πεδία" 115 Les: hvakes | oe i Ss Ὁ ἢ Pag 























(14). πάγοι. 





ITT. rz9orf.:...... . o€uvov Bpéras 
λαβόντες ἐν κόλποισιν Ἑλλάδος νεώς. 
Tro. 130 (ch): ala? Τροίας ἐν κόλποις. 

Other instances are Rhes. 354 (ch), Hel. 1146 (ch), Ion 889 (ch). Frag- 
1132, 34. 

* Singular and plural respectively as follows: 

Homer 19-1. Aeschylus 8-2, Sophocles 0-4, Euripides 5-24. 

8 Cf. ἐν μυχῷ τοῦ λιμένος, Thuc. VII, 52. 

*Cf. Herod. IX, 25. 

5 For γάπεδα see Lexicons. 

‘But πέδον is invariably singular ; Homer 2, Aeschylus 24, Sophocles 16, 
Euripides 35. 

7A true plural—ad/ the plains. 

8 Singular and plural respectively : Homer o-2 (‘‘Cliffs,’? ε 405, 411), 
Aeschylus 8-1 (Frag. 304, 10), Sophocles 3-5, (Ant. 411, Trach. 634 ch. 
Frags. 86, 353, 248-3), Euripides 5-2 (Or. 1651, I T. 1470). 





12 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


To be compared are such as the following : 
καὶ πρὶν σ᾽ ᾿Αρείοις ἐν πάγοις ' ψήφους ἴσας κρίνασ᾽, ᾿Ορέστα " x.7.A. 
and 


τοιοῦτον αὐτοῖς "Apeos εὔβουλον πάγον ἡ κιτ.λ. 


Naturally grouping with πάγοι are the four following : 





Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 























‘Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
(15) 6x6oc* ο fe) 4 I I I 15 2 
(16) σκοπιαίϑ 13 4 ο᾽ o I oO 2 4 
(17) κρημνοί" 4 2 ο ο ο 2 2 2 
(18) KAérves’ eke ἢ ο | ο 2 ο 3 2 














Other plural uses by analogy are the three : 


Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 











Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 








(19) ὅροις I I 3 2 ο Ι 9 18 
(20) ὅρια ἃ ο ο ο ο Ι ο 2 
(21) δρίσματα | o fe) fe) oO fe) oO I 4 





























(b). Grove, thicket. 
Reference is here made to δρυμοί and λόχμαι, As for δρυμοί, 
only the neuter heteroclite form appears in Homer (the Odyssey), 





1 Cf. also Or. 1651, πάγοισιν ἐν ᾿Αρείοισιν. 

ἜΤΗ, Uy (9% ῖς 

ὃ OC. 947. 

4Cf. Homeric ὄχθη. Plural: Agam. 1161; Phil: 729; Tro. 801, I T. 1375. 

5 Plural: Eur. El. 447, Hel. 769, 1324, Phoen. 233. 

ὁ Plural: Aj. 721, Soph. Frag. 505 ; Hipp. 124, Phoen. SES: 

7Plural: II 390; Cyc. 27, Alc. 578. 

8 Homeric form οὖρος, meaning /andmark in the ‘iiicittes: (Φ 405), and 
boundary in the plural (M 421). 

® Aeschylus has the word once in the plural along with πάγοι (Frag. 304, 
10- δρυμοὺς ἐρημοὺς ἢ πάγους ἀποικίσει); Sophocles the singular once and 
Euripides twice singular, once plural (Bacch. 1229). 

Singular occurs Bacch. 730; plural ib. 957. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


13 


being plural only, while λόχμαι occurs there once and in the 


singular. 
Tragedy. 


2: 


Clearly δρυμά is the starting point for the plurals of 


STREAM, WATER, BATH, FROST, DEW, BLOOD. 


(a). Stream, water. 


All in the table following occur in Homer except διαρροαί ; as 
the figures show, the Homeric impulse toward the plural is’ 






































strong. 

Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles Euripides 
Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 

(1) ῥέεθρα o | 22 2 | I ο | 4 ο | 4 

’ | | Ϊ 
(2) ῥοαί ο | 18 tel ae: a aa r | 24 
(3) πηγαί ο | 6 6 | 8 | 2 | 4 ο | 15 
(4) mpoxoai ο | 4 o | 2 o | o ae ο 
(5) κύματα 78 | 30 4 | 2 2 | ο 13 | 17 
(6) ὕδατα ΙΟΙ | I 8 ο 5 2 | 25 9 
(7) διαρροαί ο ο ο | ο ὁ} ὁ ο 3 
(0). Bath. 


Homer leads the way with the plurale tantum λουτρά, which 


is followed in Tragedy by virrpa. With the latter compare the 


Homeric ποδάνιπτρα, which appears twice,’ plural only. 














Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 
Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
is | 
λουτρά ο 8 ο 7 ἘΝ ὃ ο 18 
νίπτρα ο ο ο I Pig ee ο | 2 
ἱ 




















τ 343, 504. 


wnt 


14 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


(c).’ Dew, frost, blood. 

(1). δρόσοι---ποί Homeric, but analogous to the Homeric 
ἔερσαι (‘‘dewdrops’’). 

(2). wayo—not Homeric in this sense.’ 

Agam. 335: πάγων δρόσων τ᾽ ἀπαλλαγέντες. 

Analogically αἵματα has a place here rather than in the Body 
Group.’ 





Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 





Sing. 'Plur, Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 

















4 4 
δρόσοι ο ο 2 2 ο I 10 4 
΄ὕ 5 ὃ 
πάγοι ο ο ο Ι 3 I ο ο 
9 
αἵματα 117 oO 51 8 27 I 100 Io 

















(3). αἵματα. 

Where the plural is employed, we should think, probably, of 
the streams or drops of blood, even where more than one indi- 
vidual is referred to. 

Aeschylus : 

(a). In the literal sense, singular 39, plural 5 times. Agam. 
1293, αἱμάτων εὐθνησίμων ἀπορρυέντων, streams of blood—of Cas- 
sandra only. ‘The plural has a similar meaning in’ Eum. 166ch., 
Cho. 66 ch. Of more than one person are Agam. 1510 ch., 
ὁμοσπόροις ἐπιρροαῖσιν αἱμάτων," and Kum. 253, 


ὀσμὴ βροτείων αἱμάτων μὲ προσγελᾷ. 





1 One would expect to list νιφάς here, occurring as it does four times plural 
in Homer (‘‘snow flakes’’), and but once in the singular—O 170, was ἠὲ 
χάλαζα. νιφάς appears to be under the influence of χάλαζα which is singu- 
lar only—in Homer and Tragedy. Itis entirely probable that the invariable 
use of mds in the singular in Tragedy is due to the persistent χιών which 
is always singular both in Homer and Tragedy. 

2See πάγοι (cliffs), p. 11 f. 

5 See p. 21. 

*Plural: Agam. 336, 561; Aj. 1208; Hipp. 78, I A. 182, Ion 96, 117. 

5Plural : Agam. 335; Ant. 356. 

6 Ares riots in the fresh-spilt blood of kindred, one after another. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 15 


(0). Meaning murder, singular 7 ; plural 3 times,’ in each 
case of more than one person and being synonymous with φόνος. 

(c). Meaning relationship only the singular appears—5 times. 

Sophocles : The lone instance of the plural is found in Ant. 
120 ch, ἁμετέρων αἱμάτων. 

Euripides : 

(a). Inthe literal sense and of more than one the plural occurs 
5 times.” Of but one person are I A. 1485 ch., αἵμασι θύμασί re, 
and El. 137, πατρί θ᾽ αἱμάτων ἐχθίστων ἐπίκουρος - the plural equals 
respectively θάνατοι and φόνοι. 

(b). Meaning gouts of blood—Alc. 496 ; and alsolI T. 73: 

ἐξ αἱμάτων γοῦν ξάνθ᾽ ἔχει θριγκώματα. "ἡ 

(c). Relationship—Ion 693, ἄλλων αἱμάτων, but of two persons, 
Xuthus and the alien mother. 

Peile® thinks ‘‘ αἵματα in the plural, of itself generally denotes 
blood shed by violence.’’ But might he not have said the same of 
the singular? In Tragedy, blood iscommonly shed by violence, 
and furthermore the singular appears there almost in the ratio 
of tento one! It seems nearer the truth to say the plural 
affords a fuller, more vivid, more poetic concept—as witnesses 
the fact that the plural occurs oftener in the choral passages. 

3 
DUST, SAND. 

The poetic plural here, as in other languages, vividly com- 

prehends the whole as made up of its parts. 





Homer | Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 





Sing. | Plur. | Sing. Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 





ψάμαθοι 4 16 ο ο I ο 4 2 


“ἢ 
κονίαι 17 50 fo) 1 fe) fe} fe) 2 























1 Supp. 265, Cho. 284, 932. 

2 Or. 1548 ch., Phoen. 1052 ch., 1292 ch., Here. Fur. 894 ch., El. 1172 
(νεοφόνοισιν αἵμασιν. 

3 Cf. O T. 496, ἐπίκουρος ἀδήλων θανάτων. 

*Cf. Horace Car. II, 1, 5—arma uncta cruoribus. 

5 Note, Vol. I, p. 28. 

ὁ The plurals of Tragedy are in Hipp. 234, 1126. 

7 The three plurals of Tragedy are in Agam. 64; And. 112 ; Eur. Supp. 821. 


16 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


In the plural, only the nominative and dative of the former 
and the dative of the latter are found. Thus Tragedy follows. 
Homer precisely. With one exception,’ the plural appears only 
in choral passages. 


4. 
MEAL, DINNER. 


In this class no poetic plural is found in Homer.’ The fact 
that Aj. 1294 (δεῖπνον) and Or. 1008 (δεῖπνα) refer to the same 
banquet does not prove that the notion involved in each is. 
exactly the same—for the former may have a collective idea and 
the latter a distributive.® 

But admittedly the plural seems conventional with Euripides. 
He presents later analogous plurals, as the table shows. On 
the other hand dais resists the plural, even in Euripides. 














Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides 

Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. “Sing. Plur. Sing. | Plur. 

(1) δεῖπνα" 37 ο 5 2 | eae I 9 
(2) daires® 80 45 3 τὸ | 4 o | 30 2 
(3) ἑστιάματα fo) fe) fe) oO | ο fe) fo) I 
(4) Oowdpara Pe ae. ο ο | ο Se Bea I 


























1 Eur. Supp. 821. 

23 Strangely both δεῖπνον and dais resisted the plural in Homer (the plurals. 
of the latter there being true ones) : 7.¢. the influence of ὀνεΐατα (sing. 4, 
plur. 17) is ineffective. 

3 Cf. Kummerer, 1. c., p. 22. 

‘Plurals : Eum. 108, Aesch. Frag. 183, 3 (true plurals) ; O T. 79, Trach. 
268, Soph. El. 203 (each of one banquet); Eur. Hee. 915, Ion 655, 712,. 
£032, 1124, Or. 1008, Alc. 749, Cyc. 31, Med. 343. ᾿ 

5 Plural for singular, Ion 1131. 


6 True plurals. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 17 


5. 
FLESH, MEAT. 
As in Homer, so in Tragedy the plural prevails. 


εἴ 


Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 








Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 





(1) κρέα 3 | 44 ο 3 2 ο δ 6 


























(2) σάρκες Ι 5 2 4 I I 13°. | 38 





Trach. 1053-54: 
πλευραῖσι yap προσμαχθὲν ἐκ μὲν ἐσχάτας 
βέβρωκε σάρκας 
(z. e., the internal organs in this particular case). 
6. 


ARTICLES OF WEAR. 


(a). Cloak, robe, girdle. 
The starting point lies in εἵματα, which is for Homer prac- 
tically plurale tantum’; while πέπλοι, φάρεα, χιτῶνες are always 
genuine plurals in Homer. It will be noted that Sophocles re- 
sists the general movement toward the plural. 





Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles Euripides 

















Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. Sing. | Plur. 
| | 
εἵματαἥ 2 78 τ 4" 2 ey Ἀπ 3 
͵ | 
πέπλοι 9 7 heh Gea 15 4 BAAD 84 
φάρεα 24 5 3 2 5 tie ΤᾺΣ tee ἐν: ς, 
α | 
χιτῶνες 54 16 2 ο 5 1 a0 I 
᾿ Ϊ 

















‘Cf. vestes, common in Latin poetry. 

? Singular merely = 538, & 501. 

5 Plurals : Cho. 81, Agam. 921, 960, 963; OR. 1268; I A. 73, Hel. 1574, 
Hec. 342. 

*True plurals. 











RAR 
igre THE ig 
UNIVERSITY 

OF 


CALIFORNS 


18 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


(1) εἵματα. 

O T. 1268-69 : 
ἀποσπάσας yap εἱμάτων χρυσηλάτους 
περόνας ἀπ᾽ αὐτῆς. 

Both εἱμάτων and περόνας are apparently singular in meaning.’ 

(2). πέπλοι." 

In Homer the plural refers to several cloths, coverings or robes. 
The πέπλος corresponds to the man’s χλαῖνα, ἱμάτιον, and is never 
used there of raiment in general. 

This being the case, there is some warrant for assuming that 
when in Tragedy the plural is used of a given individual ata 
given time, it means simply the one outer robe. Favorable to 
this are the following verses from the Persae, where the reference 
is to the outer robe of Xerxes: 

Mierses SOB=106 τον ay ea es ἢ τὸν δ᾽ ὅπως δρᾷ 

Ἐξέρξης πέπλους ῥήγνυσιν ἀμφὶ σώματι. 

Verse 468: (Xerxes) ῥήξας δὲ πέπλους κἀνακωκύσας λιγύ. 
With these compare the singular of the same robe in verses 1030 
and 1060. In Eum. 352 and Supp. 457 the whole chorus may 
be referred to. 

Soph. Frag. 406: 

πέπλους (pallium’®) re νῆσαι Awoyevels τ᾽ ἐπενδύτας. 
Euripides has both the singular and plural for one and the same 
robe: the singular in Medea 786, 
λεπτόν τε πέπλον Kal πλόκον χρυσήλατον, 
and also in verses 949, 982; but the plural appears in verses 
1065, 1159, 1188, 1214 of the same play. Verse 1159 is: 
λαβοῦσα πέπλους ποικίλους ἠμπίσχετο. ; 
A similar contrast occurs in the Bacchae 935 (plural) and 
938 (singular). 





1Cf. Soph. Frag. 924, πέπλον. ... mepovis, and Med. 786. Also of 
περόναι, p. 36, and note. 

? Plurals : Sept. 101, Agam. 232, 1126, 1580, Cho. 30, 1000, Eum. 352, 
Supp. 235, 432, 457, Pers. 125, 182, 199, 468, Frag. 297; Soph. Frag. 406; 
- Eur. (see the few cited. ) 

3 Cf. Ellendt, op. cit., p. 621, 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 19 


Here may be added a word which probably stands under the 
influence of πέπλοι: 

(3). ζῶναι. 

To be compared are Aesch. Supp. 457, 

ἔχω στρόφους ζώνας τε συλλαβὰς πέπλων 
and Bacch. 935: 

ζῶναι τέ σοι χαλῶσι Kody’ ἑξῆς πέπλων. 
The latter refers to one girdle. 

(4). dpea occurs in the sense of one garment in Hipp. 133, 
Eur. Supp. 286.’ 

(5). χιτῶνες. 

I T. 288 presents one instance of the poetic plural: 

7 δ᾽ ἐκ χιτώνων" πῦρ πνέουσα Kai φόνον 
πτεροῖς ἐρέσσει. 

(6). στολμοί' 

Compare Alc. 216, 

καὶ μέλανα στολμὸν πέπλων ἀμφιβαλώμεθ᾽ ἤδη ; 
and verse 923 of the same play, 
λευκῶν τε πέπλων μέλανες στολμοί. 

(7). χλανίδια is not found in Homer at all, but it appears twice 
in Tragedy, where it is plural.® 

(b). Veil. 

(1). κρήδεμνα." 

For Homer compare ε 346 (singular), roo (true plural) and 
the four uses of the plural for the singular—a 334, 7 416, σ 210, 
65." 

Phoen. 1490: 

κράδεμνα δικοῦσα κόμας ἀπ᾽ ἐμᾶς. 





1 Homer, singular 6; Aesch. singular 2, plural 1; Eur. singular 2, plural 1. 

2Cf. also Or. 840, 1436, IT. 1149, Hipp. 126, Eur. El. 543. 

’Hermann, Hartung, Markland, Musgrave, Kirchhoff, Rauchenstein 
propose unnecessary emendations. 

4Non-Homeric ; Cho. 29, Supp. 715, (true plurals) ; Euripides—singular, 
Alc. 216, And. 148, and plural, Alc. 819, 923, Here. Fur. 526, Tro. 258. 

5A very rare word, but I find the’singular in Herodotus I, 195. 

6 Homer singular 7, plural 7 ; Euripides plural 2 times. 

7 Homer has the plural twice in a metaphorical sense, (II roo, ν 388), and 
is followed by Euripides in Tro. 508 ; but in the same sense Hesiod has the 


singular (Sc. 105). 


20 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


(2). kaA¥ppara—appears but once in Homer, © 93, singular. 
In Tragedy’ it appears once in the singular, five times in the 


plural. 
(c). Wreath, crown, thead-band. 


Homer presents as the regular form of στέμμα the plural which 
occurs A 14, 373. The one use of the singular seems to 











be accounted for on purely metrical grounds.” Analogous 
plurals are here listed with στέμματα as follows : 

Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 

Sing. | Plur. | Sing. hie Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
στέμματα I 2 ο ο oO ο oO 10 
στέφη ο ο 2 3 6 Hyuk I 9 
στέφανοι I ο ο ο 2 I 26 13 
πλόκοι re) ο Ι ο Ι oO 4 3 
pit pat 4 ο oO ο ο ο 3 2 
ἀναδέσμαι Ι Oo ο ο ο ο ο Ι 
ἀναδήματα ο ο ο ο ο ο I I 





























(1). στέμματα" occurs plural for singular in Kur. Supp. 470: 
λύσαντα σεμνὰ στεμμάτων ἱκτήρια. Also in Ion 1310, Or. 12. 
(2). στέφη just as also σκῆπτρα is singular in meaning Agam. 


1264-65 : 
τί δῆτ᾽ ἐμαυτῆς καταγέλωτ᾽ ἔχω τάδε, 
καὶ σκῆπτρα καὶ μαντεῖα περὶ δέρῃ στέφη ; 
Compare the singular in Cho. 1035: 
ξὺν τῷδε θαλλῷ καὶ στέφει προσίξομαι. 
Ο T. 912-12 : τάδ᾽ ἐν χεροῖν 
στέφη λαβούσῃ κἀπιθυμιάματα. 





1 Singular Soph. El. 1468. Plural Agam. 1178 (one veil) Cho. 494 (one 


net) ; Aj. 245, Trach. 1078; I T.. 372. 
3 See this word in Part Three of this chapter. 


$Plurals: Eur. Supp. 36, 470, Ion 224, 522, 1310, 1338, 1389, Or. 12, 


And. 894, Bacch. 350. 





The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 21 


Euripides :' Especially noteworthy is Phoen. 858, 
οἰωνὸν ἐθέμην καλλίνικα σὰ στέφη, 

where στέφη is identical with στέφανον in verse 856. See also 
I A. 1513. 

(3). στέφανοι." 

The poetical plural appears in Alc. 796 and 832 in the ex- 
pression στεφάνοις πυκασθείς. 

(4). πλόκοι. 


Compare the plural in Euripides El. 778, 
Spérwv τερείνης μυρσίνης κάρᾳ mAdxovs,* 
and the singular in Med. 786 as also 841--- 
ῥοδέων πλόκον ἀνθέων. 
(5). μίτραι. 
Hec. 923-24: 
ἐγὼ δὲ πλόκαμον ἀναδέτοις 
μιτραῖσιν ἐρρυθμιζόμαν (1. e. simply ἀναδέσμῃ)). 
(6). ἀναδέσμαι in Med. 978 ch., 
δέξεται νύμφα χρυσέων ἀναδεσμᾶν, 
is the same as στέφανον in verse 984. 
(7). ἀναδήματα. 
To be compared are the two following citations from Euripides : 
Hipp. 82-83, κόμης ἀνάδημα δέξαι and El. 882, δέξαι κόμης 
σῆς βοστρύχων ἀναδήματα. 
Β. 
The Body Group. 
Homer, as well as Tragedy, is rich in poetic plurals of this 
nature. Homer, however, does not go so far as Euripides, who 





‘Singular, Med, 949, but the verse is generally suspected (see Stephanus’ 
Lexicon and editors), πλόκον being read instead on the ground that an ex- 
act repetition of verse 786 is meant. Statistics support the emendation. 
Plurals are in Phoen. 858, Supp. 359, I A. 1477, 1512, Tro. 258, 451, 1247, 
Herac. 71, Ion 104. 

2Cf. Demosthenes’ veiled reference to a crown in τῶν προβεβουλευμένων 
(De Corona 2 53); also Aeschines vs. Ctes. ὃ 249. 

8’Means Jock of hair in Cho. 197, Aj. 1179. Euripides singular—Med. 
786, 842, 1186, El. 527; plural Ion 1266, Herc. Fur. 233, El. 778. 

Οὐ Pindar O. XIII, 45 ; πλόκοι σελίνων (parsley wreath). 


22 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


presents a case of ὄμματα for the lone eye of the Cyclops, of ὦμοι 
for one shoulder, or of δόμοι for a cedar-chest ! 

Just as the plural was natural to Homer in ὄμματα (plurale 
tantum, 14 times), ὀφθαλμοί (generally plural there), παρειαί 
(plurale tantum, 19 times), ῥῖνες (singular 4, plural 11 times), 
so the plural seems to involve a dual notion in other words as 
applied to parts of the body of a symmetrical nature. 

On the other hand, the singular predominates in Homer for 
στόμα (singular 25, plural 3 times), μέτωπον (singular 11, plural 
I time), αὐχήν (singular 36, plural 1 time), μετάφρενον (singular 
15, plural 1 time), orépva (singular 14, plural 4 times); as for 
νηδύς, it is always singular in Homer and Tragedy, 

But the plural form of στήθη (singular 36, plural 146) and 
νῶτα (singular 9, plural 22) persisted strongly. 

A review of the various words and their uses shows a recipro- 
cal analogy at work, singular to plural and vice versa. 


I. 


FACE, FOREHEAD, MOUTH, EYE, JAW, CHEEK, CHIN, 
: THROAT, NECK. 


(a). The face, forehead, mouth, eye. 











Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles Euripides 
Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
πρόσωπα τ 9 Ι 3 6 3 Pas sim 
μέτωπα II I I I I 2 I 2 
στόματα 25 5 4-38 3 | 24 δ: | 40 | 4 
ὄμματα 14 O°). 28. | 32. 7. 92 epee neaeta yey 
κόραι ο ο ο ο ο I D4)" 25 





























(1). πρόσωπα. 
The plural commonly means but one face both in Homer and 
Tragedy, except in Aeschylus—where every plural is genuine. 





1Since the metre favors the singular in = 24 (note the agreeing adjective) 
the singular is probably thus to be accounted for. 


The Poetic. Plural of Greek Tragedy. 23° 


This applies also to the long form of Homer—zpocwzara' (of 
one person H 212, σ 192). 

J. H. H. Schmidt’ thus interprets the plural of ὑπώπια : ‘‘Denn 
warend die Stirn als Einheit erscheint’’ (why not Zweiheit in 
πρόσωπα as wellas ὑπώπια ἢ) ‘‘ist das untere’ Gesicht bis zum 
Munde und Kinn hin—und nur dieses wird gemeint sein—durch 
die Nase in zwei gleiche Teile geteilt und jede Backe erscheint 
als ein selbstandiger Teil des Gesichtes.’’* Spitta’s* explanation 
of the force of the plural—‘‘ pulchritudinem mirum quantum 
auget’’ is rightly condemned by Juhl.° Ovid’s hostilia Ora 
( jaws) canum is dualistic. 

As for Tragedy Kummerer® (approved by Volp) rightly says, 
** Die Erklarung, der Plural bezeichne Mienen, Ziige, der Singu- 
lar aber Gesicht, scheint gezwungen, da in den meisten Fallen der 
Singular eben so gut mit Ztigen, Mienen tibergesetzt werden 
kann.’’' The inner meaning* of the word is shown to be dual by 
its composition—oy, 

‘ Soph. Frag. 787, 6 (even of the moon’s face) : 
ὥσπερ σελήνης ὄψις... ἔρχεται νέα πρόσωπα καλλύνουσα. 

Ion 187-189 : 

ἀλλὰ καὶ παρὰ Λοξίᾳ 
τῷ Λατοῦς διδύμων προσύ---- 
mov καλλιβλέφαρον φώς. 

Here πρόσωπα is probably best taken as referring to the eastern 
facade only, whose architectural face, symmetrically divided, is 
boldly compared to the human face.’ 





1J. Schmidt (1. c., p. 404 f.) thinks πρόσωπα is the Acc. sing. of the -n 
stem. This longform seems surely to be a formation on the analogy of 
ὄμματα. See note 5, p. 7, and note 1, p. 8. 


? Synonymik der Griechischen Sprache, Vol. IV, Leipsic, 1886. 
3Cf. Gildersleeve op. cit., p. 24. 

“ Quaestiones Vergilianae, 1867. 

5 Op. cit., p. 9: ‘‘In plurali solo pulchritudinis notio non inest.”’ 
®Op. cit., p. 4. 

7 Of. for example Ant. 1241 and Soph. El. 1297. 


8Cf. Pollux II, 53, where πρόσωπα is defined as the bones next to the nose, 
under the eyes ; to this the Scholiast added—rihv πρόσοψιν: ἀπὸ μέρους τὸ: 
ὅλον. 

®Variously construed is πρόσωπα here: as meaning images of Apollo and. 
Diana (Heath), the sun and moon—symbols of Apollo and Diana (Paley),. 
statues (Hermann), the eastern and western facades, etc. 


24 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


(2). μέτωπα. In Homer the plural occurs once—of one person 

(€107). Similarly the plural appears in Hel. 1567-68 : 
μονάμπυκον δὲ Μενέλεως ψήχων δέρην 
μέτωπά τ᾽ ἐξέπεισεν εἰσβῆναι δόρυ. 

(3). στόματα. ‘The plurals of Homer and Aeschylus are true 
ones ; but only one mouth is meant in Trach. 937-8 : 

ἀμφί viv γοώμενος 
οὔτ᾽ ἀμφιπίπτων στόμασιν, ἀλλὰ πλευρόθεν. 
So too in Alc. 402-3: 
καλοῦμαι ὃ 
σᾶς ποτὶ σοῖσι πίτνων στόμασιν νεοσσός. 

(4). ὄμματα. Though plurale tantum in Homer, the singular is 
about as frequent in Tragedy as the plural; the singular is often 
poetic. 

Euripides reaches an extreme in applying the plural to the 
Cyclops’ eye—Cyc. 459, 470, 511. But the singular for the 
same appears in verse 600 and elsewhere. 

(5). Κόραι. Like ὄμματα, κόραι is of the Cyclops’ eye in Cyc. 
463, O11. 

(b). Jaw, cheek, chin, throat. 





Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 








Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur | Sing. | Plur. 
yevves' 9 ay: 32 ο i 2 2 16 6 
γένεια 7 ο 3 ο 2 Ι II ο 
γενείαδες ο Ι 2 ο Ι ο 9 
λαιμοί 5 ο ο ο ο ο 5 





























(1). γένυες shows ἃ marked movement towards the plural in 
Euripides. It affords an interesting comparison with στόματα. 
The former, though plurale tantum in Homer, assumes the singu- 





1Cf. yauondats—not only plurale tantum but also restricted to dative 
only—Homer 3, Prom. 353, Eur. Ion 159, 1495. 
2 For example A 416. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 25 


lar in Sophocles, and in Euripides is even used collectively’ like 
στόμα. : 

On the other hand the singular of the latter prevails con- 
sistently,—but in Euripides even the plural is used of one eye. 
The analogical influence is reciprocally active.’ 

(2). γένεια. The only plural found is in Sophocles OT. 1277, 
of the bloody cheeks of Oedipus. 

(3). yevelodes.® The plural means cheeks Ion 1460—61 
(Cretisa to Ion) : : 

νῦν δὲ γενείασιν παρὰ σέθεν πνέω 
μακαριωτάτας τυχοῦσ᾽ ἡδονᾶς. 

(4). λαιμοί. The poetic plural does not appear before Euripi- 
des. Where the meaning is restricted to gullet, the plural does 
not occur.* Plural for the singular are Or. 1472 ch., Phoen. 
1092, Heracleidae 822,° Ion 1065. Probably the plural should 
convey a dualistic notion of the throat. 

(c). Neck—aiyéves.® 

The poetic plural appears only in Soph. Frag. 598, 4: ἥτις 
(πῶλος) . . . . θερὸς θερισθῇ ξανθὸν αὐχένων ἄπο. 

Euripides does not employ the poetic plural, but in Rhes. 303 
reaches an opposite extreme in the collective singular : 

αὐχένα ζυγηφόρον πώλων ἔκλῃε. 
2. 


LUNG, SIDE, BOSOM, SHOULDER, BREAST, BACK, DIAPHRAGM, 
MIDRIFF, HEART, GALL. 


The principal Homeric words obtaining here are στήθη and 
φρένες. ‘The former is found but twice in Tragedy,’ and nowhere 





1 Phoen. 63, τέκνων yévus ἐμῶν; Cf ib. 32, plural of one person. 

*These two words approach in meaning asé. g. Ant. 121, αἱμάτων γένυσιν 
πλησθῆναι. 

5 The plural in Homer means beard. See Ρ. 30. 

*As e.g. Ion 1037: κἄνπερ (πῶμα) διέλθῃ λαιμόν. 

5 For λαιμῶν βροτείων, see Allusive Plural, Chap. III. 

6 Homer singular 31, plural1; Aeschylus singular 2, plural 1; Sophocles 
singular 2, plural 1; Euripides singular 7, plural 4. 

7 Sept. 865, and 663: ; 

ἱκνεῖται λόγος στηθέων, but the Coryphaeus includes the chorus. 


26 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


of one person. Itis represented largely by στέρνα and φρένες, 
the latter being very common. 











Homer 
Sing. Plur. 
φρένες : 51 290 
στήθη" 36 146 











(a). Breast, lung, side, bosom, shoulder. 

(1). στέρνα" Already in Homer’® στέρνα had been used three 
times of one person—I 194, N 282, 290. ‘The following suggest 
the dual idea: ΓΤ 194, ἐυρύτερος δ᾽ ὥμοισιν ἰδὲ στέρνοισιν ἰδέσθαι. 
Trach. 567-8, ἐς δὲ πλεύμονας στέρνων διερροίζησεν. 

Eur.* Frag. 323: τάχ᾽ ἂν πρὸς ἀγκαλαῖσι καὶ στέρνοις" ἐμοῖς: 

πηδῶν ἄθυροι. 

Aeschylus has the plural of one person three times, two of which 
are Prom. 65, and Cho. 746—rvxovr’ ἐμὴν ἤλγυνεν ἐν στέρνοις φρένα. 

To the above are here added certain words, together with 
analogous plurals, which not only pertain to one person, but in 
some cases undergo a still further restriction in meaning : 

(1). πλευραί. 

Compare Trach. 930-31, 

δρῶμεν αὐτὴν ἀμφιπλῆγι φασγάνῳ 
πλευρὰν ὑφ᾽ ἧπαρ καὶ φρένας πεπληγμένην, 
with Ant. 1236, 


ἤρεισε πλευραῖς μέσσον ἔγχος. 

1See Witte : ‘‘ Wenn στῆθος von dem KoOrperteil als solchem gesagt ist 
stehe im allgemeinen der Singular; plurale tantum dagegen sei das. 
Wort, wenn es ‘animus’ bedeute. Ganz natiirlich: in allen diesen 
Fallen ist στήθεσσι(ν) ja Analogiebildung nach ¢peci(v)’’—In Glotta, p. 137, 
1908, ‘* Zur Homerischen Sprache.”’ 

2 Uses in Tragedy : Aesch. plural 5—Prom. 65, Pers. 1054, Agam. 76, Cho. 
746, Fr. 362; Soph. sing. 2, plur. 8—literal sense, Phil. 792, OC. 1609, El. 
90, Trach. 568, 1090, Aj. 633; figurative sense OC. 482, Ant. 639, while the 
singulars are in Trach. 482, Fr. 196 (ἀνδρῶν στέρνον collective), both being 
figurative uses ; Eur. commonly plural. 

ὃ Used there sing. 14, plur. 5 times. 

4So also ib. I A. 681, ὦ στέρνα καὶ παρῇδες. 


ΩΓ Gothic Brusts, but German #rust. Even Xenophon has the 
plural of one person in Cyr. I, 213, παίσας els τὰ στέρνα... παῖδα. 





: The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 27 


In the latter, the metre permits the singular equally well, and yet 
probably only one side is meant.’ 

(2). πλεύμονες" (mvevpoves ). 

Cho. 639-40 : 

τὸ δ᾽ ἄγχι πνευμόνων ξίφος 
διανταίαν ὀξυπευκὲς οὐτᾷ. 

Trach. 567-68 : 

és δὲ πλεύμονας 
στέρνων διερροίζησεν. 

In each case the plural is apparently singular in meaning, 
just as issometimes the case in English also. The sword or 
arrow is hardly thought of as penetrating both lungs. For the 
singular compare Trach. 1054.” 

(3). κόλποι (See pages 10-11). 

(4). μαστοί" (μαζοί). 

Soph. El. 776-77 : 

μαστῶν ἀποστὰς Kal τροφῆς ἐμῆς φυγὰς 
ἀποξενοῦτο-- 
the dual notion of the word stands out prominently. 
Trach. 924-25: 
ἡ χρυσήλατος 
προὔκειτο μαστῶν περονίς. 

The plural strictly interpreted, would seem to mean merely 
the left breast, since it was the Greek custom to clasp the brooch 
at the left shoulder.* 

(5). ὦμοι is rather loosely used in a choral passage of Orestes, 
verses 1471-73: 

dpos ἀριστεροῖσιν ἀνακλάσας δέρην 
παίειν λαιμῶν ἔμελλεν 
ἔσω μέλαν ξίφος. 





1Cf. Δ 468 πλευρὰ οὔτησε ξυστῷ χαλκήρεϊ. Elmsley thinks the tragic poets 
used the feminine noun only in the singular and that only the heteroclite 
neuter plurale tantum appears in the plural there (note to Herac. 824) ; so 
also Porson (note to Hec. 820, Or. 217). 

3 Homer once in singular—A 528 ; plural always in Tragedy, but in Trach. 
1054 mss. Lr favor singular. 

3’Occurs Homer singular 17, Aeschylus singular 3, Sophocles plural 2, 
Euripides more often the singular. 


4*Cf. Jebb’s note, s. v., p. 136. 


28 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


With this compare the singular in IT. 1381: 

λαβὼν ᾿Ορέστης ὦμον εἰς ἀριστερόν. 

(b). Back. 

(1). νῶτα. 

In Homer the singular appears 9 times; while the plural is 
found 22 times, usually referring to but one person’ or else em- 
ployed in a transferred meaning.? ‘The plural prevails in about 
the same ratio in Tragedy.’ 

Prom. 429-30 ch. : 

yas οὐράνιόν τε πόλον 

νώτοις ὑποστενάζει. 
The plural is probably dualistic and almost equals pos* (the 
shoulder of Atlas). 

Sophocles apparently has the same idea in the two uses follow- 
ing—Trach. 1047, 

καὶ χερσὶ Kal νώτοισι μοχθήσας ἐγώ, 
and also in verses 1089-90" : 
ὦ χέρες, χέρες, 
ὦ νῶτα, καὶ στέρν᾽, ὦ φίλοι βραχίονες. 

Euripides has two uses of the poetic plural similar to those 

above, which are particularly worthy of note—Hec. 1264, 
ὑποπτέροις νώτοισιν ἢ ποίῳ τρόπῳ, 
and I T. 1141--42, 
πτέρυγας ἐν νώτοις dmois 


λήξαιμι θοάζουσαδ. 





‘For a collection of such uses, see Bekker, Homerische Blatter, Vol. I, 
p. 163. 

2Cf. 8 93, πῇ φεύγεις μετὰ νῶτα βαλών, Kakds ὡς ἐν ὁμίλῳ with 
B 159, ᾿Αργεῖοι φεύξονται ἐπ᾽ εὐρέα νῶτα θαλάσσης. 

3 Aeschylus sing. 1, plur. 1; Sophocles sing. 2, plur. 7: Euripides sing. 
8, plur. 21. 

4Cf. £225—vGra και εὐρέας ὥμους. 

5Cf. also Aj. 110, μάστιγι πρῶτον νῶτα φοινιχθεὶς θάνῃ. 

6 Cf. Β 308, ἐνθ’ ἐφάνη μέγα σῆμα" δράκων ἐπὶ νῶτα δαφοινός which Vergil 
imitates, Aeneid II, 474—Lubrica convolvit sublato pectore terga. Juhl 
(p. 12) and Spitta (p. 21) rightly see in the plural a vivid picture of the 
coils. 





The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 29 


In the transferred sense the word seems to be a favorite one of 
Euripides. He speaks of the dacks of the sea, of the sky, of the 
earth, of the chariot, of the rock, the plural clearly involving 
the ὄγκος notion, quantity’ or extent. The poetic value of the 
plural is at once apparent in such passages as Hipp. 128 ch., 
νῶτα πέτρας evadiov,? I T. 46, χθονὸς δὲ νῶτα σεισθῆναι σάλῳ, Hel. 
129, ποίοισιν ἐν νώτοισι ποντίας ἁλός ὃ 

(c). Diaphragm, midriff, heart, gall. 

(1) φρένες is plural in its earliest use, meaning ῥελαν εν parks 
about the heart; then heart, breast, mind; manifestations of 
mind—and is synonymous with στήθη when the latter hasa 


figurative meaning. 


Juhl* following Ameis holds that for Homer the singular has 
only a psychic, and never a literal meaning. As for Tragedy, 
however, the plural is employed in the meaning of animus, mens’, 
while in at least one instance the plural means praecordia’— 
Aeschylus Prom. 881 : 

κραδία δὲ φόβῳ φρένα λακτίζει, 
where φρένα clearly equals διάφραγμα, metrical convenience proba- 
bly being responsible for the singular. As in Homer, so in 
Tragedy, the plural prevails.’ 

Aeschylus : 

The plural equals καρδία in the Prom. 361 and Eum. 159. 

Sophocles : 

The plural is of one heart in Trach. 931. Euripides presents 
no departure from the uses found in Aeschylus and Sophocles. 





1Cf. Juhl, p. 12, and Spitta p. 5. 

* Strictly speaking, such plurals are genuine—each wave being a νῶτον. 

5 Here as in El. 731 ch., and Frag. 114, 3, the plural assumes the indefinite 
force of τόποι, χῶροι. 


ΠΡ ΟΣ p. 17. 

δ See Dindorf, Lexicon Aeschyleum, p. 383, and Volp, 1. c., p. 50. 

δ᾽ Not so recognized by Dindorf and Volp. 

Occurs Aesch, sing. 52, plur. 62; Soph. sing. 29, plur. 27. Euripides 
has both numbers passim, the plural being the more frequent. 


20 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


As the following verses show, there is no clear distinction in 
number : 

Prom. 781, 

ἣν ἐγγράφου σὺ μνήμοσιν δέλτοις φρενῶν, 
Soph. Frag. 540, 
θὲς δ᾽ ἐν φρενὸς δέλτοισι τοὺς ἐμοὺς λόγους. 

(2). mpamides' is to be closely identified with φρένες. Its singu- 
lar appears only twice, and in Euripides’; these two instances are 
to be charged to the influence of φρήν probably. 

(3). χολαί is found but once in the plural—Ant. 1009-Io: 

καὶ μετάρσιοι 
χολαὶ διεσπείροντο. 

Kummerer® with some reserve explains the plural by ϑέμεζε 
der Galle which seems right. ‘The gall-bladder burst and the 
particles were scattered into the air. 


2. 
HAIR AND BEARD. 

A review of words in this class shows for Tragedy a decided 
tendency toward the singular, but it seems well to include them 
for the purpose of comparison. The collective notion is 
especially persistent in Aeschylus and Sophocles. 











Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 

Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
yeveiades ο Ι 2 ο Ι ο 9 3 
ἔθειραι ο 5 Ι Ι ο ο 2 Ι 
τρίχες ο 14 8 ο 5 Ι 5 Ι 
χαῖται 3 14 I ο᾽ Ι ο 14 3 
κόμαι 10 3 I ὰ 6 2 29 15 





























1Uses: Homer plural 11; Aeschylus plural 3; Euripides singular 2, 
plural 3. 

27Bacch. 427, 999. 

SO. CIE. Diy 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 31 


(1). γενείαδες. (For the plural meaning cheeks in Tragedy, 
see page 25). 

(2). ἔθειραι. 

The plural carries a sense of vagueness in Cho. 175---ποίαις 
ἐθείραις. 

Hel. 632 : 

γέγηθα, κρατὶ δ᾽ ὀρθίους ἐθείρας 
ἀνεπτέρωκα. 

(3). τρίχες. 

In OC. the plural is used exactly as ἔθειραι in Hel. 632 
(above). ; 

(4). χαῖται. 

The plural appears only in choral verses—Phoen. 308, Alc. 
‘908, Med. 841. 

(5). κόμαι. 

See Aj. 1174, 1209 and Or. 1469. 


ο 
The Instrument Group. 


: 
ARMS. 


The starting point for our purpose lies in the Homeric pluralia 
tantum ἔναρα, τεύχεα, βέλεμνα, and also in ὅπλα which in the singu- 
lar appears there but twice." 


Aeschylus and Sophocles have only the plural of ὅπλον, while 
Euripides employs the singular? but three times as against a 
frequent use of the plural. 

(a). Bow, sword, arrow. 





19 390, ξ 346. 
2 Herc. Fur. 161, 570, 942. 


32 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 





Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 








Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
τόξα 72} 41 6 6 4 | 24 SL Se 
βέλη 46 43 6 6 4 13 II 8 
ξίφη $4. 1 κι δ ἢ I 7 Rh ag ome 
φάσγανα 22 3 I ο 4 re) 2 3 





























(1). τόξα in Homer not infrequently has a plural significance, 
meaning the whole bow equipment—-raoav τὴν τοξικὴν σκεύην' --- 
as for example in ® 490-2: . . . δεξιτερῇ Sap ἀπ᾿ ὥμων αἴνυτο. 
τόξα. . . ταχέες ἔκπιπτον οἰστοί, and H 140: 

οὕνεκ᾽ ἄρ᾽ οὐ τόξοισι μαχέσκετο δουρί τε μακρῷ. 

The plural also expresses the abstract idea of archery, as im 

B78: 

τῶν δὲ Φιλοκτήτης ἦρχεν τόξων εὖ εἰδώς, 
that is τῆς τοξικῆς ἐμπειρίας. 
- But the plural is also found there in the sense of one bow. 
For example, in Book X XI of the Odyssey the one bow is referred. 
to 40 times by the singular and 9 times by the plural. 

In Tragedy the plural is relatively far more common, the 
meaning at times being restricted even to the arrow. 

Agam. 510, Apollo’s bow; Cho. 694, Curse’s bow; Eum.. 
627-8, τόξοις is equivalent to βέλει : οὔ τι θουρίοις 

. τόξοις ἑκηβόλοισιν. 

Sophocles: Of the bow-equipment are Phil. 68, 654, 763,. 
942, 1440; of the bow alone is Phil. 710-11 : 

πλὴν ἐξ ὠκυβόλων εἴ ποτε τόξων " 
πτανοῖς ἰοῖς ἀνύσειε γαστρὶ φορβάν 

The arrows alone are meant in Phil. 652, as Ellendt’ points: 

out, but the meaning is not so restricted in verse 654: 





Cf. Juhl, p. 34. 
2Cf. Herc. Fur. 160 f: τόξα, κάκιστον ὅπλον. 
5QOp. cit., p. 740: ‘‘Arcus nec παραρρυῆναι nec ἀπαμελεῖσθαι potuit, sed 


sagittae’’. Cf also Phil. 1303. 1 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 33 


Bi. εἴ μοί τι “τόξων τῶνδ᾽ ἀπημελημένον. 
παρερρύηκεν, ὡς λίπω μή τῳ λαβεῖν. 
ΝΕ. ἦἢ ταῦτα γὰρ τὰ κλεινὰ τόξ᾽ ἃ νῦν ἔχεις. 
Euripides affords the same uses as Sophocles and Aeschylus, 
Of one bow, Med. 632-4 : 
μήποτ᾽ ὦ δέσποιν ἐπ᾽ ἐμοὶ 
χρυσέων τόξων ἐφείης 
ἱμέρῳ χρίσασ᾽ ἄθυκτον οἰστόν." ; 
In Ion 524 τόξα clearly means only the arrows, or perhaps one 
arrow : 
οὐκ ἀπαλλάξει, πρὶν εἴσω τόξα πλευμόνων λαβεῖν ; 
(2). βέλη. 
Cho. 160-1 : 
ἐν χεροῖν παλίντον᾽ 
ἐν ἔργῳ βέλη ᾿πιπάλλων ΓΑρης, where βέλη seems to assume 
the meaning of τόξα and mean one bow as indicated hy the bow- 
epithet’? παλίντονα, 
Sophocles : 7 
In the Philoctetes there is, apparently, a loose interchange of 
βέλη and τόξα, each meaning bow, arrow, or both,—verse 140, 
βέλεσι τοῖς Ἡρακλέους ; verse 198, τεῖναι τὰ θεῶν᾽ ἀμάχητα βέλη; 
verse 1287, δέχου δὲ χειρὸς ἐξ ἐμῆς βέλη τάδε; Verses 1302-3, 
φεῦ" τί μ᾿ ἄνδρα πολέμιον 
ἐχθρόν τ᾽ ἀφείλου μὴ κτανεῖν τόξοις ἐμοῖς. 
Euripides strangely has no poetic plurals in this case; all 
there are true ones. 
(3). ξίφη. 
Aeschylus : 
One would rather expect the singular in Cho. 163 ch.: 
σχέδιά τ᾽ αὐτόκωπα νωμῶν ξίφη: 
Sophocles : 
In Ant. 820 the plural calls attention to the sword as such. 
As the singular in Aj. 30° shows, the plural in verse 231 is of 





1Cf. Or. 268, Supp. 886, Here. Fur. 366, 1ogo, 1098. 
2See Θ 266, Herodotus VII, 69, Trach. 511. 

8 Apollo (θεῶν) provided Heracles with bow and arrows. 
4 πηδῶντα πεδία σὺν νεορράντῳ ξίφει. 


24 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


the hero’s one sword, but suggests probably the number of 
objects slaughtered, the sword-thrusts : 
συγκατακτὰς 
κελαινοῖς ξίφεσιν βοτὰ καὶ βοτῆρας ἱππονώμας. 

Euripides has a use similar to that of Aj. 231 (above) in Or. 

1398-9 : 
βασιλέων ὅταν αἷμα χυθῇ κατὰ γᾶν ξίφεσιν 
σιδαρέοισιν "Avda, 

Hades is hardly pictured as holding many swords in hand, but 
rather as meting out death in many forms, by many thrusts.’ 
One would surely expect the singular? in And. 821-22: 

εἴργουσι φύλακες δμῶες ἔκ τε δεξιᾶς 
ξίφη καθαρπάζουσιν ἐξαιρούμενοι. 

(4). φάσγανα. 

As Or. 1035-36° (where the singular is found) clearly shows, 
the plural of verse 953 is singular in meaning : 

ἀλλ᾽ εὐτρέπιζε φάσγαν᾽ ἢ βρόχον δέρῃ. 

The general movement toward the plural enlists as poetic 
plurals the two following, if Volp be accepted for the latter : 

(5). ἰού, 

Trach. 573-74: 

ἡ μελαγχόλους 
ἔβαψεν ἰοὺς θρέμμα Λερναίας ὕδρας. 

That only one arrow is meant, is seen in verse 5δ67---ἧκεν 
κομήτην ἰόν. Jebb’ thinks the plural suggests the double barb 
of the arrow. 

(6). ἀγκύλαι. 

OT. 204: 


χρυσοστρόφων ἀπ᾽ ἀγκυλᾶν βέλεα, 





'Cf. El. 164. 
* Volp in referring to Aj. 231 says wrongly : ‘‘Quem pluralem neque antea 
neque postea quisquam de singulari ense usurpare ausus est.’’ 

8 Sec δ᾽ ἢ βρόχους (see under βρόχοι) 

ἅπτειν κρεμαστοὺς ἢ ξίφος θήγειν χερί. 

‘Homer sing. 25, plural 12; Aesch. sing. 5, plural 1; Soph. sing. 4, plural 
3,3. Hur. 1, ‘plur. 1. 
5 Note, s. v., p. 90. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 35 


and Or. 1476 both refer to but one bow. Volp' considers the 
plural analogous to τόξα. But IT. 1408 may show that ἀγκύλη 
is the bow-string (nervus), and that the plural is of the loops 
at the end. In this case we have to do with a figure of speech, 
not a poetic plural. 


(b). Shield, sheath. 
(1). ἀσπίδες. 
Sophocles is the first to use the poetic plural, if the following 
be admitted : 
OT. 190-1: “Apea . . . ὃς νῦν ἄχαλχος ἀσπίδων 
φλέγει με περιβόατον, ἀντιάζω. * 
Similarly El. 36: 
ἄσκευον αὐτὸν ἀσπίδων τε καὶ στρατοῦ. 
In the former the notion of ἀσπίδων may be, as it probably 
is in the latter, equal to στρατοῦ ; in the latter each comprehends 
the same idea.* 
(2). κολεοί. 
IA. 1566-7 : 
ἔθηκεν ὀξὺ χειρὶ φάσγανον σπάσας κολεῶν᾽ ἔσωθεν, 
where one sheath is meant. Compare Hec. 543-4: 
φάσγανον κώπης λαβὼν | ἐξεῖλκε κολεοῦ. 
a 
DOMESTIC ARTICLES. 


(a). Axe, brooch, goad, sickle. 

(1). yévves is plurale tantum in Homer, having there a dual 
force in a different meaning—jaws.° ‘The same dual notion is 
probably transferred to its secondary meaning—axze—as is sug- 
gested in Eur. Frag. 530, 6: 

πελέκεως δὲ δίστομον γένυν ἔπαλλ᾽ ᾿Αγκαῖος. 





'So does Witte, op. cit., p. 31. 
?Kummerer: ‘‘So kann man nur an den einen Schild denken ; Sophokles 
will durch dx. dow. die personificirte Peste von Kriegsgotte unterscheiden.”’ 
5Cf. Kaibel, Sophokles Electra, note s. v. 
* Cf. περιβολάς, 1b. Phoen, 276. 
φέρ᾽ ἐς σκοτεινὰς περιβολὰς μεθῶ ξίφος. 
5See p. 24. 


36 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


So too the word means axe in Soph. El. 196-197 ch. : 
ὅτε οἱ παγχάλκων ἀνταία 
yeviov' ὡρμάθη πλαγά. 
(2). περόναι. 
Sophocles OT. 1268-69 : 
ἀποσπάσας γὰρ εἱμάτων χρυσηλάτους 
περόνας ἀπ᾽ αὐτῆς. 

Phoen. 804-5 : 

Heres Οἰδιπόδαν θρέψαι βρέφος ἔκβολον οἴκων 
χρυσοδέτοις περόναις ἐπίσαμον. 

Here may be added, too, Euripides Bacchae 98. These 
plurals may be singular in force’; and Trach. 924-25 would so 
suggest : 5 

λύει τὸν αὑτῆς πέπλον 7 χρυσήλατος 
προύκειτο μαστῶν περονίς. 

(3). πόρπαι.5 

The same applies here as to περόναι. 

Phoen. 62: 

Oedipus—xpvonA\dros πόρπαισιν αἱμάξας κόρας. 

(4). κέντρα. 

As περόναι, so κέντρα in OT. 1318 : 

κέντρων Te τῶνδ᾽ οἴστρημα Kal μνήμη KaKOv.* 

So, too, but one goad is meant, in Phoen. 177-178: 

ὡς ἀτρεμαῖα κέντρα Kal σώφρονα 
πώλοις μεταφέρων ἰθύνει. 

The plural suggests the blows upon the horses in turn. 

( ns ἅρπαι." 

Ion 191-192 (of one sickle): 

Aepvaiov ὕδραν évaipe 


χρυσείαις ἅρπαις ὃ Διὸς παῖς. 





1 (Οὐ singular ib. Phil. 1205. 

2So Kummerer, but Jebb: ‘‘One fastened Iocasta’s ἱμάτιον on her left 
shoulder; and another her Doric Χιτών on the right”? (note 5. v., OT. 
1269. ) 

$Plural only in Homer and Tragedy ; not found in Aeschylus or Sophocles. 

*Cf. also Eur. Frag. 622, 4 and ib. Hipp. 194. 

5 {7565 : Homer sing. 1 (Ai¢e) ; Soph. sing. 1, Frag. 391 (where it equals 
δρέπανον) ; Eur. plur. 1, where it is equivalent to δρέπανον. 


The Poetic Plural_of Greek Tragedy. 37 


(b). Rule, anvil, ladder, mirror. 

(1). κανόνες. ἢ 

Tro. 814: 

κανόνων δὲ τυκίσματα, that is—the rule of Phoebus. Com- 
pare verse 6. 
(2). ἀκμόνες." ° 
Eur. El. 443 ch. : 
Ἡφαίστου χρυσέων ἀκμόνων. 

(3). κλίμακες." 

Where the poetic plural occurs, it should probably convey a 
notion of the rounds of the ladder, its structure. The fact that 
this poetic plural occurs nowhere in Homer, or Tragedy, except 
in Euripides, and the further fact that metre cannot in general 
account for the plurals there, indicate a natural preference for 
the plural on the part of Euripides. 

Aeschylus has κλίμακος προσαμβάσεις in Sept. 466, and the same 
appears Eur. Phoen. 1173 ; but κλιμάκων---οἵ one ladder—appears 
in verse 489 of the latter play, as also in IT. 97 and Bacch. 
1213." 

(4). €vorrpa.° 

Hec. 925-6 ch. : 

χρυσέων ἐνόπτρων 
λεύσσουσ᾽ ἀτέρμονος εἰς αὐγάς." 
Ἄς 
INSIGNIA OF AUTHORITY. 
(1). σκῆπτρα. 
After Homer there is a marked shift towards the plural.’ The 





‘Occurs Homer sing. 1, plur. 2 (true plurals) ; Soph. sing. 1; Eur. sing. 
4, plur. 4. 

2 Occurs Homer sing. 3, plur. 1 (true plural) ; Aesch. plur. 1 (true plural); 
Soph. sing. 1; Eur. plur, 1. 

%Occurs Homer sing. 4; Aesch. sing. 1; Soph. plur. 1; Eur. sing. 4, 
plur. 8. 

* Cf. also Phoen. I00, 104, 1179, 1182. 

5 Found only in Euripides—plurale tantum. Cf κάτοπτρον which appears 
in Tragedy in the singular only. 

6 Cf. Eur. Or. 1112, Tro. 1107. 

7 The uses of the word are: Homer sing. 34, plur. 2; Aeschylus sing. 2, 
plur. 4; Sophocles sing. 4, plur. 5; Euripides sing. 7, plur. 19. 


38 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


explanation seems to lie in the extensive meaning of the word 
when used symbolically. 3 
Already in Homer the plural was used of but one sceptre— 


Σ 503-505 : 


οἵ δὲ γέροντες 
elar ἐπὶ ξεστοῖσὶ λίθοις ἱερῷ ἐνὶ κύκῳ ῳ’ 
σκῆπτρα δὲ κηρύκων ἐν χέρσ᾽ ἔχον ἠεροφώνων, 
where Leaf’ notes as follows: ‘‘ The plural σκῆπτρα seems to be 
used loosely to imply that they all had the staff in turn. The 
herald’s staff is handed to the speaker to give him ‘ possession 
of the house’, so that of course only one can be in use at the 
time.’’” Such a use of the plural, of course, cannot be paralleled 
in Tragedy, but where it appears there— plural for singular—the 
royal personage is to be conceived of as the possessor of all 
official powers and prerogatives, to be dispensed as he may 
desire.’ It may be said in general for Tragedy that the poetic 
plural is based not merely on the idea of a literal sceptre but it 
embraces the much fuller concept just suggested ; while on the 
other hand, the mere sceptre is designated by the singular. 
To support this general statemeut, note the following : 
Eum, 625-26 : 
ov γάρ τι ταυτὸν ἄνδρα γενναῖον θανεῖν 
διοσδότοις σκήπτροισι τιμαλφούμενον. 
Prom. 761: 
πρὸς τοῦ τύραννα σκῆπτρα συληθήσεται. 
Soph.* El. 650-51: 
ἀλλ᾽ ὧδέ μ᾽ αἰεὶ ζῶσαν ἀβλαβεὶ βίῳ 
δόμους ᾿Ατρειδῶν σκῆπτρα τ᾽ ἀμφέπειν τάδε. 
OC. 425-26: 
ὡς οὔτ᾽ ἂν ὃς νῦν σκῆπτρα καὶ θρόνους ἔχει 


μείνειεν. 





1Tliad—Vol. I, p. 306. 

2 567 and A 234. 

5 As Pers. 298 suggests, officers as well as the king held a sceptre. There 
were royal eunuchs who were called σκηπτοῦχοι (Xenophon Cyropedia VII, 
3, 16). In asense the king possesses scepires just as he possesses powers 
(κράτη.) : 

* The dual in OC. 848, τος refers of course to Antigone and Ismene. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 39 


OC. 448-49 : 
τὼ δ᾽ ἀντὶ τοῦ φύσαντος εἱλέσθην θρόνους 
καὶ σκῆπτρα κραίνειν καὶ τυραννεύειν χθονός. 

For Euripides may be cited tbe following verses where the 
plural has the same force as those above: El. 11, Herc. Fur. 
213,' 1167, IA. 1194, IT. 187, Or. 437, 1058, Phoen. 52, 73, 
80, 514, 591, 601, 1253, Ion 660. 

But the singular means more than the mere sceptre in. Phil. 
139-140 :ἢ 

καὶ γνώμα map ὅτῳ τὸ θεῖον 
Διὸς σκῆπτρον ἀνάσσεται. 

Once even in Aeschylus the plural is literal but singular in 

meaning—the Agam. 1265°: 
καὶ σκῆπτρα Kal μαντεῖα περὶ δέρῃ στέφη. 
Again, in three cases Euripides has the plural for the singular 
in a literal sense—And. 1222-23 : 
οὐκέτ᾽ ἔστι μοι πόλις 
σκῆπτρα τ᾽ ἐρρέτω τάδε. 
El. 321-2: 
καὶ σκῆπτρ᾽ ἐν οἷς Ἕλλησιν ἐστρατηλάτει 
μιαιφόνοισι χερσὶ γαυροῦται λαβών. 
Herc. Fur. 1103-04 : 
ἀλλ᾽ οὔτι Σισύφειον εἰσορῶ πέτρον 
Πλούτωνά τ᾽ οὐδὲ σκῆπτρα Δήμητρος κόρης. 

(2). Βάκτρα“ is used for one wand in Euripides, probably on 
the analogy of similar literal uses of σκῆπτρα there. 

Ion 216-7: 

βρόμιος. . . ἄλλον... Baxrpos . . ἐναίρει. 
Phoen. 1719: 
βάκτρα πρόσφερ᾽, ὦ τέκνον. 





1 Herc. Fur. 254 has ἃ true plural. 

* So Ellendt Lex. p. 686: ‘‘ Medium propriae et tralatae huiusce significa- 
tionis locum obtinet. 

*For such passages as this and the following see chapter on metre, 5. v. 
It is easy to see the convenience of the plural. 

*Non-Homeric ; Aesch. sing. 1, plur. 1 (true plur.); Eur. sing. 4, plur. 4. 


40 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


4. 
VEHICLES AND PARTS THEREOF. 

Kummerer’ in treating the problem of ἅρμα (as also other neu- 
ters in -ua) for Tragedy, considers the plural usages analogous 
to the substantive neuter plural of the participle : that is ἅρματα 
equals ἡρμοσμένα (things fitted together).” ‘The root of the, word 
is ar, as Kummerer, Volp*® and Juhl‘ assert, yet no satisfactory 
explanation is presented for the use of the plural in Tragedy. 
Juhl is silent for Homer and so are Kummerer and Volp for 
Tragedy. For our purpose recourse must be had to Homer. 
There as well as in Tragedy both plural and singular are used of 
one chariot,’ but the plural is more frequent than the singular. 
In the Odyssey the singular does not appear at all. 

The plurals of Homer clearly show traces of metrical con- 
venience and this it is that serves largely to sustain the plural in 
Tragedy. ‘The transition in Homer was particularly easy in 
view of the Homeric plurale tantum ὄχεα, which occurs there 
37 times® ; it does not, however, appear in Tragedy, but is repre- 
sented there by the masculine éxou.' 

A comparison of the uses in Homer and Tragedy easily ac- 
counts for the rather free play toward the plural in the latter. 

It is a question whether the plural should convey the notion 
of a vehicle as made up of its parts, the things fitted togcther ; the 
Homeric ἀφ᾽ ἵππων (2. 6. ἅρματος) and ἵππων ἐπιβαίνει suggest that 
the plural ἅρματα may have corresponded earlier to our collo- 
quial 77g—either ἵπποι or ἅρματα being at times mutually inclusive. 





1Op. cit., II, p. 14. 

*Volp combats their view on p. 42, but apparently accepts it on p. 54. 

3 Op. cit., p. 54. 

“Op. ΟΡ; 30. 

5}. g. E237: ἀλλὰ σύ γ᾽ αὐτὸς ἔλαυνε re ἅρματα καὶ red ἵππω. So too ib. 239 
and elsewhere, 

6 Witte ingeniously notes how inconvenient the tribrach ὄχεα was for 
heroic verse, and regards the persistent plural a proof of the original plu- 
rality of the word. 

7 This word occurs but once in Homer—e 404—where it means harbors. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 41 



































(a) Chariot. f 
Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 
Sing. Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
ἅρματα 21 | 46 | ο ΤΊ ἘΝ te 29 
| 
ὀχήματα ο | ο σῶς Ι Ι II 6 
ele | 
δίφροι 82 | aa ee eae rhe us 5 
ὄχοι Ὅν ΠΈΣ aa | τὶ 2 2 8 17 
, ] | 
σατίναι Sa Ot. 2 δ᾽ {τὴῦ ο | ο fe) I 
(1). ἅρμα. 
Pers. 190-191 : 


κατεῖχε κἀπράνεν ἅρμασιν" δ᾽ ὕπο ζεύγνυσιν αὐτώ, 
where the plural is for the singular as also in Choephori 795, with 
which compare verse 660. 
Herc. Fur. 880-882 : 
βέβακεν ἐν δίφροισιν ἃ πολύστονος 
ἅρμασι δ᾽ ἐνδίδωσι 
κέντρον. 

Here ἅρμασι is of one team, meaning really ἵπποις, while δίφροισιν 
is of merely one chariot, of course. Compare Hipp. 111, 1166, 
1183 with verse 1195 where the singular is used of the same 
chariot. 

(2). ὀχήματα 

Aeschylus*® Pers. 607-8 (of one chariot) : 

τοιγὰρ κέλευθον τήνδ᾽ ἄνευ τ᾽ ὀχημάτων, 
χλιδῆς τε τῆς πάροιθεν. 
Soph. El. 740: . 
κάρα προβάλλων ἱππικῶν ὀχημάτων, 
where the plural is best taken in the sense of vig, both vehicle 
and horses.‘ A corresponding use of the singular appears in 





‘True plurals. 

2 Cf. δίφρου ib. 194. 

Prom. 468. The other uses in Aeschylus are Supp. 183 and Prom. 468. 
‘Cf. Ellendt, p. 589, and Jebb’s note. 


42 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Alc. 66-67 : 
Εὐρυσθέως πέμψαντος ἵππειον μέτα 
ὄχημα Θρήκης ἐκ τόπων δυσχειμέρων. 
Euripides’ LA. 610-1 (of one chariot’) : 
ἀλλ᾽ ὀχημάτων 
ἔξω πορεύεθ᾽ ἃς φέρω φερνὰς κόρῃ. 
(3). δίφροι. 
The plural first appears in Sophocles of one chariot—El. 49-50 = 
ἄθλοισι ΠΠυθικοῖσιν ἐκ τροχηλάτων 
δίφρων κυλισθείς. 
Similiarly verses 510--512 ; 
παγχρύσων ἐκ δίφρων 
δυστάνοις αἰκίαις 
πρόρριζος ἐκριφθείς͵ 
and also verse 742°: ὲ Ι 
ὡρμᾶθ᾽ ὃ τλήμων ὀρθὸς ἐξ ὀρθῶν δίφρων. 
Hel. 724-5: 
σὺ δ᾽ ἐν δίφροις" 
σὺν τῷδε νύμφη δῶμ᾽ ἔλειπες ὄλβιον. 
(4). ὄχοι. 
Of one chariot: Soph.® Frag. 611, 
ὄχοις ᾿Ακεσσαίοισιν ἐμβεβὼς πόδα, 
and Soph. El. 727: 
μέτωπα συμπαίουσι Βαρκαίοις ὄχοις. 
Euripides’ does not fail to press ὄχος into varied service. 





1Plurals—IA. 610, 616, Rhes. 392, Phoen. 44, Supp. 662, Frag. 779, 6. 
Some of the singulars are Hipp. 1233, Tro. 884, Med. 1321, Rhes. 621, 
Alc. 67. 

2Similarly ib. 616 and Phoen. 44. 

3 Literally the’ chariot-board, where the ἠνίοχος and the παραιβάτης stood. 
Note the word’s etymology (δύο + φέρω). 

4See also ib. 710, 723, 750. 

5 See also ib. 1040, Phoen. 2, IT. 214. 

6In OT. 808 Doederlein (followed by Hartung, Dindorf, Nauck) reads 
ὄχους, while Jebb, Ebeling and others follow the text which is very difficult 
to construe. 

7 Occurs sing. Med. 1123, Hipp. 1166, 1212, 1229, IA. 623, Tro. 856, El. 
999, Rhes. 190; plur. Phoen. 1190, And. ro19, Tro. 569, 626, Hipp. 122 

pp 5» 
IT. 370, Bach. 191, Hel. to4o, El. 969, 1135, IA. 146, 599, 613, Rhes. 416, 
Supp. 316 (Pierson, Dindorf and Hermann read λόχους) 674, 676, Bacch. 


Ρ. 33 


The Poetic Plural-of Greek Tragedy. 43 


In IA. 146-7 the word virtually means the wheels by reason of 
the adjective : 
τροχαλοῖσιν ὄχοις παραμειψαμένη 
παῖδα κομίζουσ᾽ ἐνθάδ᾽ ἀπήνη. 
But merely the chariot is meant in verse 599 : 
τὴν βασίλειαν δεξώμεθ᾽ ὄχων. 
So too in verse 613, but the singular appears in verse 623: 
τέκνον, καθεύδεις πωλικῷ δαμεὶς ὄχῳ ; . 
Other poetic plurals are Hipp. 1225,' Tro. 569, El. 966, 
1135, Hel. togo, and Bacch. 1333-4: 
ὄχους" δὲ μόσχων χρησμὸς ὡς λέγει Διός, 
ἐλᾷς μετ᾽ ἀλόχου βαρβάρων ἡγούμενος. 
(5). σατίναι occurs only in Euripides. The lone instance there 
is plural and of but one chariot—/Hel. 1310-1 : 
θηρῶν ὅτε ζυγίους 


ζεύξασα θεὰ σατίνας.ἣ 


(0). Rim, axle. 

(1). dyrvyes* is used of the rim of one chariot in Homer. The 
dual nature of the rim justifies the plural : 

® 38—rapve νέους ὄρπηκας ἵν᾿ ἅρματος ἄντυγες" εἶεν. 

E γ28---δοιοὶ δὲ περίδρομοι ἄντυγές εἰσιν. 

The plural in Tragedy meaning the chariot may be considered 
a figure of speech, the number being analogical to ἅρματα : or 
else the plural may be merely a Homeric reminiscence. 


Aj. 1030: 
Ἕκτωρ ζωστῆρι πρισθεὶς ἱππικῶν ἐξ αντύγων κτέ. 
Soph. El. 746: 


κἀξ ἀντύγων ὥλισθεν κτέ. 





'Cf. ἁρμάτων ὄχος (ib. 1166), τέθριππον ὄχον (ib. 1212), τέτρωρον ὄχον 
(10. 1229). 

*The ms. reading ὄχων seems impossible. As against the prevalent 
reading ὄχον (Dind., Weck., Paley), the plural is preferable. So Witte, p. 200. 

3A true plural appears in H. Hom. Ven. 13; but cf Anacreon 20, 12— 
ἐπιβαίνει σατινέων. 

* Homer sing. 9, plur. 4; Soph. plur. 2; Eur. sing. 7, plur. 3. 


44 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Eur. Rhes. 567-68 : 
οὐκ, ἀλλὰ δεσμὰ πωλικῶν Ex ἀντύγων 
κλάζει σιδήρου. 

Compare Phoen. 1193 where the plural is of more than one 
chariot, and Rhes. 236, Hipp. 1231 where the singular is used 
of one chariot. 

(2) ἄξονες." 

Hipp. 1234-35 (of one axle) : 

σύριγγές T ἄνω 
τροχῶν ἐπήδων ἀξόνων τ᾽ ἐνήλατα. 
5. 
WOVEN AND LINKED ARTICLES—CHAIN, NOOSE, NET. 

Enallage of number is particularly free here. Where the plural 
occurs of one instrument, it probably conveys a fuller concept— 
the constituent parts of the whole. 

(a). Chain. 

Homer presents δεσμοί together with its heteroclite form 
δέσματα." Of all the uses of the two words there, however, I 
find the plural for the singular but once; the latter so appears 
in X 468.° 

(1). δεσμοί." 

To be compared are Prom. 96-97 : 

toiovd ὃ νέος ταγὸς μακάρων 
ἐξηῦρ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἐμοὶ δεσμὸν ἀεικῆ, 
and verses 524-25: 
τόνδε yap σῴζων ἐγὼ 
δεσμοὺς" ἀεικεῖς καὶ δυὰς ἐκφυγγάνω. 


In the latter case δύας would encourage the plural. 





'Occurs Homer sing. 5, plur. 1 (true plur.) ; Aesch. one true plural ; 
Soph. sing. 1 (El. 745) ; Eur. plur. 2. 

3 For convenience the two are classified separately. 

580 Autenrieth, Homeric Dictionary. 

¢Occurs Homer sing. 20, plur. 11 ( probably true plural in each case, but 
note 2 379, κόπτε δὲ δεσμούς, 7. €., rivets, as Leaf takes it) ; Aesch. sing. 4, plur. 
9 (Prom. 6, 113, 155, 176, 509, 525, 770, 1006, Frag. 235, 2) ; Soph. sing. 1, 
plur. 3 (Aj. 62, 72, Frag. 60) ; Eur. sing. 3, plur. 19. 

5 ( δεσμά, ib. 513. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. | 45 


In the two passages following, the bond made by the reins is 
meant—Hipp. 1236-7 : 
αὐτὸς δ᾽ 6 τλήμων ἡνίαισιν ἐμπλακεὶς 
θεσμὸν δυσεξήνυστον ἕλκεται δεθείς, 
and verses 1244-46: 
x® μὲν ἐκ δεσμῶν λύθεὶς 
τμητῶν ἱμάντων οὐ κάτοιδ᾽ ὅτῳ τρόπῳ. 
πίπτει. 
(2). Seopa’ (Homer, δέσματα). 
Prom. 513: 
ὧδε δεσμὰ φυγγάνω, with which compare δεσμούς in verse 525. 
(3). δεσμώματα isin Tragedy twice—a plurale tantum—Pers. 
745 and Soph. Frag. 26. 


(b). Noose, net. 

Of all the words under this head only three appear in Homer, 
and not one of the three has the plural for the singular there. 
The figures show for Sophocles and Euripides a strong shift 
toward the plural. The three in Homer are: 





Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 


Ϊ 
































Sing. | Pilur. Sing. 'Plur. | Sing. Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
ey ἘΜ | 
Bpoxor I τς το Nh Den ΣΕ na (gee, 9 21 
. 
ἕρκηΐ 28 7 3 | Rates ih ae 2 2 
δίκτυα Ι ο 7 Se ead τὰ I ο 3 
ἘΠ EES, 
NOOSE. 
(1). βρόχοι. 


Or. 1035-6 (of one noose as βρόχον in verse 953 shows) : 
δεῖ δ᾽ ἢ βρόχους Ἵ 
ἅπτειν κρεμαστοὺς ἢ ξίφος θήγειν χερί. 





1Plurale tantum both in Homer and Tragedy : Homer 3, Aeschylus 3, 
Euripides 14. 

2 Occurs in x 472, where the plural is really a true one; cf βρόχοι there 
with ἕρκει, v. 469. The nooses about the several necks are the meshes of a 
net, as it were. 

8 Only once used in this sense in Homer and there it is singular. 


46 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Similar instances are And. 843, 

τί με βρόχων εἴργεις, 
Hipp. 779,᾿ 

γυνή, κρεμαστοῖς ἐν βρόχοις ἠρτημένη. 
The three following are non-Homeric: 
(1). ἀρτάναι." f 
Iocaste’s suicide is referred to in each of the following passages 

from Sophocles—Ant. 54: 

πλεκταῖσιν ἀρτάναισι λωβᾶται Biov, 
OT. 1266: 

κρεμαστὴν ἀρτάνην. 
(3). ἐῶραι (αἰῶραι). 
OT. 1264°: 

πλεκταῖς ἐώραις ἐμπεπλεγμένην. 
(4). ἀγχόναι." 
Hel. 200-1 : 

Ansa δ᾽ ἐν ἀγχόναις 
θάνατον ἔλαβεν." 

Hipp. 777: 

ἐν ἀγχόναις δέσποινα, Θησέως δάμαρ." 


NET. 


The working of analogy is apparent in such expressions as 
Herc. Fur. 729-30 ; 
βρόχοισι δ᾽ ἀρκύων δεδήσεται ; 
ξιφηφόροισι (literally: entangled in the sword-bearing meshes 
of the nets, Ζ. e. shall suffer the peril of the sword.) For a 
contrast of ἕρκη and δεσμοί, see Soph. El. 837; for that of ἕρκη 
and βρόχοι, compare Eur. El. 155. 
(1). ἕρκη. 





180 also Tro. 1012 and elsewhere. 

* Occurs Aeschylus plur. 3 (true plurals) ; Sophocles sing. 1, plural 1. 

3 Only here in Tragedy. 

*Occurs Aeschylus sing. 1 (Kum. 346) ; Sophocles sing. 1 (OT. 1374); 
Euripides sing. 5, plur. 6. 

5 See ib. verse 136. 

ὁ Cf. ib. verse 779—€v βρόχοις. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 47 


Agam. 1611: 
ἰδόντα τοῦτον τῆς Δίκης ἐν ἕρκεσιν. 
Aj. 59-60 : 
ἐγὼ δὲ φοιτῶντ᾽ ἄνδρα μανιάσιν νόσοις 
ὥτρυνον, εἰσέβαλλον εἰς ἕρκη κακά. 
Soph. El. 837-38: 
οἶδα γὰρ ἄνακτ᾽ ᾿Αμφιάρεων χρυσοδέτοις ἕρκεσι 
κρυφθέντα γυναικῶν (where ἕρκεσι is of a single necklace). 
Eur. El. 154-5: ξ 
ὀλόμενον δολίοις βρόχων 
ἕρκεσιν. 
Bacch. 957-8: 
καὶ μὴν δοκῶ σφᾶς ἐν λόχμαις ὄρνιθας ὡς 
λέκτρων ἔχεσθαι φιλτάτοις ἐν ἕρκεσιν. 
(2). ἄρκυες." 
Eum. 147: 
ἐξ ἀρκύων πέπτωκεν οἴχεται θ᾽ ὃ θήρ. 
Pers. 97-98: 
φιλόφρων γὰρ παρασαΐνει 
βροτὸν εἰς ἄρκυας “Ara.* 
Euripides Bacch. 451-2: 
ἐν ἄρκυσιν yap ὧν 
οὐκ ἔστιν οὗτως ὠκὺς ὥστε μ' ἐκφυγεῖν 
Same play, verses 868-870 : 
ἡνίκ᾽ ἂν φοβερὰν φύγῃ 
θήραν ἔξω φυλακᾶς 
εὐπλέκτων ὑπὲρ ἀρκύων. 
Med. 1278: 
ὡς ἐγγὺς ἤδη γ᾽ ἐσμὲν ἀρκύων ξίφους." 
(3). δίκτυα." 





Eur. plur. 3 (Or. 1315, Phoen. 263, Bacch. 1206). 
‘Cf. use of singular ib. Med. 986, and Herac. 441: 
ποῖον δὲ γαίας ἕρκος οὐκ ἀφίγμεθα. 
? Occurs Aesch, sing. 2, plur. 2 (1) ; Eur. sing. 2, plur. 6. 
* Hermann thus restores the reading from the corrupt ἀρκόστατα. 
* Cf. further Bacch. 231, El. 965, IT. 77. ‘ 
* Uses—Homer sing. 1 (x 386) ; Aesch. sing. 7; Soph. sing. 1, plur. 1; 





48 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Soph. Frag. 846, 3: 

ἐν τοῖσιν αὐτοῖς δικτύοις dAioKera.’ 
Phoen.263-4 : 

ὃ καὶ δέδοικα μή με δικτύων ἔσω 

λαβόντες οὐκ ἐκφρῶσ᾽ ἀναίμακτον χρόα. 
(4). ἀγρεύματα." 
Compare Aeschylus Agamemnon το48᾽ and Choephori 998. 

6. 
LETTER, WRITING-TABLET. 





Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 





Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 








γράμματα ο ο I 5 I 2 © a 5 
γραφαί ο ο 2 Ι Ι ο 6 6 
ἐπιστολαί" ο ο ο 4 ο 4 re) II 


























_ The notion involved in γράμματα, γραφαί finds a parallel 
in such an expression as τἀγγεγραμμένα" Referring to the same . 
letter in the Iphigenia among the Tauri are the following: 
δέλτου (727), γραφήν (762), δέλτοισιν (787), γραφάς (735), ἐπιστολάς. 
(767). γράμματα (745), τἀγγεγραμμένα (763). 

_ A similar free Enallage of number obtains for ὅρκος" in 
Tragedy. _ 

(4). δέλτοι resists the plural, but in certain instances yields.’ 
The two cases in Aeschylus and Sophocles are used in a meta- 
phorical sense, but Euripides has the poetic plural in a literal. 
sense. 





1Cf. Frag. Adesp. 300: ἐν τοῖς ἐμαυτοῦ δικτύοις ἁλώσομαι. 

? Aesch. sing. 2, plur. 2; Eur. sing. 1 | Frag. 754), plur. 2. 

* The plural in Eur. Bacch. 1241 has another meaning—prey. 

“In Aeschylus and Sophocles always equals mandata. 

5]. T. 760, 763. 

Ch e. g. IT. 768, ὦ padlos ὅρκοισι περιβαλοῦσά με with verse 790: τὸν 
δ᾽ ὅρκον κατώμοσ᾽ ἐμπεδώσομεν. While the plural suggests metrical con- 
venience, it apparently conveys the notion of the stipulations in the oath. 

™Uses—Aesch. plur. 1; Soph. sing. 3, plur. 1; Eur. sing. 26, plur. 4 
(IA. 116, 798, IT. 787, Frag. 369, 6). . 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 49 


Prom. 781: 

ἣν ἐγγράφου σὺ ἀνήμοσιν δέλτοις φρενῶν. 
Soph. Frag. 540: 

θὲς δ᾽ ἐν φρενὸς δέλτοισι τοὺς ἐμοὺς λόγους. 
IT. 789: 

τάδ᾽ ἐστὶ τὰν δέλτοισιν' ἐγγεγραμμένα. 
IT. 115-6: 

πέμπω σοι πρὸς ταῖς πρόσθεν 

δέλτοις, ὦ Λήδας ἔρνος κτὲ. 

iB 
The House Group. 


I. 
THE HOUSE. 

Kummerer’ concludes that δώματα, δόμοι are to be explained as 
being ‘‘analog dem substantivirten Neutrum plural einer Ad- 
jectivs oder Particips’’ ; or else they should be placed among 
the ‘‘quasi pluralia tantum.'’ He continues: ‘‘So bezeichnet 
δῶμα, δόμος der Ableitung nach (von δέμω) zunachst das Gebaute ; 
wie von einem Gebaude τὰ ὠκοδομημένα stehen konnte, so kann 
der Dichter den: Plural δώματα, δόμοι gebrauchen, ohne dass die 
Beziehung auf die Theile des Hauses bemerkbar wire.’’ * 

The explanation is at once ingenious and plausible, but it 
seems incorrect for two reasons: (1) The expression τὰ ᾧκο- 
δομημένα for house is not to be found in Greek Literature‘; if 
δώματα is analogous thereto, we should expect to find it actually 
existent. (2) The evidence at hand points to an original sin- 
gular for house, and to the fact that the plural could easily have 
represented a combination of simple structures into a complex 
one. 

As J. Schmidt*® points out, the earliest Homeric form was 


1Cf. ib. 760: ἐν δέλτου πτυχαῖς. 

2Op. cit., Vol. II, p. 14. 

$In like manner he would explain ἅρματα (= τὰ ἡρμοσμένα), ζεύγματα (= τὰ 
_ ἐζευγμένα). 
«(Οὐ Volp, p. 42. 
> Op. cit., pp. 221-223. 








50 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


δῶ, which was originally singular.’ I venture to suggest that the 
early singular points to the time of the primitive hut of one 
chamber.” When first used the plural did not mean ¢hings built, 
but rather a plurality of chambers. When the singular was used 
the notion was one of unity, and when the plural occurred, the 
notion was one of unity in the light of its parts—chambers. 

- Juhl for Homer, and Spitta for Vergil attempt to explain the 
plural as meaning ‘‘ magnum vel magnificum vel amplum aedi- 
ficium, quod dicimus Palast.’’ But such a distinction cannot 
hold for the word as late as Homer, and certainly not for 
Tragedy or Vergil. ‘The plural hardly does more than afford a 
distributive as against a collective notion, for both numbers are 
often applied to the same structure, as e.g. the palace of 
Odysseus.*® 

The cedar-chest of Alcestis* was far from being a ‘‘ Palast ’’! 
To Euripides the plural there is a mere convention. 

An example of δῶμα" in the sense of one chamber appears in 
Z 313-317: 





t 


! The word is always found in the sixth foot, and in 22 of 23 places has a 
singular modifier as ¢. ¢. ἡμέτερον. In one instance (A 501) it appears un- 
modified by an adjective—és rarépos δῶ. In Hesiod’s Theogony 933 (χρύσεα 
δῶ) the plural adjective does not oppose the view taken, for it cannot be 
considered the reminiscence of an earlier usage. Our word is there thrown 
out of its formal position anyway (7. ὁ. the sixth foot). This solitary use of 
56 as plural may be explained as that of an obsolete singular noun following 
by analogy the Homeric δώματα. 

*In reference to the oriental ‘‘ joint undivided family ’’, see Sterrett’s Iliad, 
p. 222, where he says: ‘‘ When a young man marries, he needs but one 
chamber (cone) ; as his family increases other cone-chambers are built by 
the side of this original cone-chamber. As each child marries, other cone- 
chambers are built. . . . until finally the establishment of a patriarch 
consists of a great collection of isolated, but juxtaposed and intercommuni- 
cating chambers, each with itsown cone roof witha hole at the apex for 
the exit of the smoke.”’ 

’ This palace is designated by δόμος, δόμοι, δῶμα, δώματα. οἶκος, μέγαρον, and 
μέγαρα! 

*Alc. 160 f: ἐκ δ᾽ ἑλοῦσα κεδρίνων δόμων ἐσθῆτα. 

° Cf. Lat. aedes which occurs regularly in the plural in the sense of 
dwelling, but the singular is used for /emple (Neue, Formenlehre der 
Lateinischen Sprache, Vol. I, p. 675, Leipsic, 1902). The singular appears 
of one room in a dwelling also,—e. g. Plautus Asinaria 220, Aedis nobis 
areast. Cf. also the very elastic use of μέγαρον which occurs often in Homer, 
but never in Tragedy. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 51 


Ἕκτωρ δὲ πρὸς δώματ᾽ ᾿Αλεξάνδροιο βεβήκει 

καλά, τὰ ῥ᾽ αὐτὸς ἔτευξε σὺν ἄνδρασιν οἱ τότ᾽ ἄριστοι 
ἦσαν ἐνὶ Τροίῃ ἐριβώλακι τέκτονες ἄνδρες. 

οἵ ot ἐποίησαν θάλαμον καὶ δῶμα καὶ αὐλὴν 
ἐγγύθι τε Πριάμοιο καὶ Ἕκτορος ἐν πόλει ἄκρῃ." 

Here a distinction is forced between the plural and singular, 
δώματα being the whole house, δῶμα the male apartments, θάλαμον 
the woman’s apartments, and αὐλήν the court. 

These studies show for Homer in general, however, that in 
speaking of the whole house, he is free to use either number of 
δῶμα, δόμος, the numerical difference in either case being small. 
The conclusion will appear inevitable that metre often dictated 
number, the avoidance of hiatus alone being responsible in not a 
few instances. 

The original difference in meaning between δῶμα, δόμος and 
the word οἶκος is distinct.*, The former are traceable to the root 
dem, while fox is identified with vis* of Zend-Avesta (eine 
Gemeinschaft von 15 Mannern und Frauen), with Latin vicus 
and Gothic vezhs. ‘The fine distinctions of earlier times largely 
disappear, however, and the roots dem and voik have produced 
interchangeable words.‘ 

Like δῶ, οἶκος persists in the singular in Homer. ‘The poetic 
plural occurs once in the Odyssey " and in Tragedy the plural 
predominates. Analogy and metrical convenience serve to make 
a large number of words follow δόμοι and δώματα. 





1G. also x 494, Ψ 146. 

7Of. J. H. H. Schmidt, op. cit., 508. 

3 So Justi, quoted by Schmidt. 

*But οὐ Eur. Med. 1136—1143, where οἶκοι (the household) is contrasted 
with déu0 (the house). Note too στέγαι (women’s apartments). 

5 See Juhl, op. cit., p. 25. Grashof, LaRoche, Nauck would emend this one 
instance of the poetic plural—w 417. The mss. consistently read οἴκων. 

δ It is important to note here the Homeric μέγαρον which does not occur 
in Tragedy, but in Homer is found sing. 98, plur. 204. It must have given 
impetus to the plural tendency of δόμος and δῶμα. The μέγαρον is properly 
(1) the big (μέγα) room of the Homeric house, 7. ¢. the men’s dining hall 
(δ 300) ; it means also (2) the women’s apartments (7 16); (3) the house- 
keeper’s apartments up-stairs (ὑπερώιον β 94) ; (4) a sleeping apartment 


" 


52 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 





Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 



































Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
δόμοι 89 67 16 | 113 4 72 49 | 524 
δώματα III | 137 12 45 5 15 60 | 149 
οἶκοι 170 5 14 22 27 32 74 | 192 
(1) δόμοι. 


Aeschylus: There is no sure example of δόμος here in the 
sense of one chamber, unless such a conception be felt in the 
figurative use of the word in Eum. 515: 

ἐπειδὴ πίτνει δόμος δίκας, where the word means temple; in this 
meaning of the word, the plural occurs 10 to 2 in favor of the 
plural. | 

The plural means house in (e.g.) Agam. 1309, Sept. 232, Cho. 
22, 745; means femple in (e. g.) Agam. 964, Eum. 35, 60, 185, 
699; means family in (e.g.) Sept. 740, 879. In Agam. 851-52 
the plural might be taken to refer to Agamemnon’s private 
apartments : 

viv δ᾽ ἐς μέλαθρα καὶ δόμους ἐφεστίους 
ἐλθὼν θεοῖσι πρῶτα δεξιώσομαι. 
Sophocles: For the literal sense the plural is always used’ 
except in OC. 1564: 
νεκρῶν πλάκα καὶ Στύγιον Sdpov’. 

Twice the singular means family, domestic conditions—Ant. 584: 
οἷς ἂν σεισθῇ θέοθεν δόμος, 

and OC. 370: 


οἵα κατέσχε τὸν σὸν ἄθλιον δόμον ; 





(A 374) ; (5) the whole house was first mentioned by the plural in A 396, 
and commonly so thereafter. Butin σ 24 even the singular applies to the 
house, and in £94 the plural means one chamber—ornoapuévn μέγαν ἱστὸν 
ἐνὶ μεγάροισιν ὕφαινεν. 

As Juhl notes (Ρ. 26), Athenaeus is wrong in referring the plural only to 
the homes of heroes (Vol. V, p. 193, C). 

‘ E.g. OT. 861, 1006; OC. 643; El. 1493; Ant. 392. 

*In Homer the accusative singular is used of the home of Hades 11 times. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 53 


The plural has the same meaning at least 9 times." 
The plural often means ative land, ancestral home.* So also 
the singular, as in Phil. 459-60 : 
» GAN ἡ πετραία Σκῦρος ἐξαρκοῦσά por 
ἔσται τὸ λοιπόν, ὥστε τέρπεσθαι δόμῳ͵ 
Sophocles has δῶμα one time for femp/e,* but never δόμος or οἶκος. 
An interesting combination of δόμος and οἶκος appears in Trach. 
688-690 : 
Deianeira---viv δ᾽, ὅτ᾽ ἦν ἐργαστέον, 
ἔχρισα μὲν κατ᾽ οἶκον ἐν δόμοις κρυφῇ 
μάλλῳ. 
κατ᾽ οἶκον is a stereotyped phrase* meaning within the house as 
against outside the gates ; and if so taken here, δόμοις must be 
regarded as referring to the woman’s apartments (yvvatxwviris).° 
Such a restricted meaning the plural has in the Odyssey.® 
Euripides: Both numbers appear in the different meanings. Of 
one literal house compare Or. 179, 
τὸν ᾿Αγαμεμνόνιον ἐπὶ δόμον 
with Hec. 59, 
ἄγετ᾽, ὦ παῖδες, τὴν γραῦν πρὸ δόμων. 
Of one house (family), compare IA. 1030: 
μηδὲ πατρῷον δόμον αἴσχυν( ε) 
and verse 930: 
οὔ που νοσοῦντας θεῖος ὕβρισεν δόμους. 





1Z.g. El. 1070, OT. 934. El. 1359. 

2 E.g. OC. 784, 1408, El. 63. 

SOT. 71. 

* See p. 56. 

5Kummerer (p. 8) following Schneidewin interprets δόμοις by ‘‘ von 
einem einzelnen Gemache.’’ Volp (p. 44) considers κατ᾽ οἶκον equal to “in 
conclavi,’’ and ἐν δόμοις equal to ‘“‘domi.’’ οἶκος is used in Homer at least 
twice of one chamber—7 18 (7.¢. the atrium), and probably a 356, 7 514. 
In this regard Volp’s view is not objectionable. Cf Bekker’s Charikles in 
the house-description—‘‘ die Zimmer, οἶκοι oder oikjuara’’—Vol. II, p. 136. 

ὁ 303 : ἀλλ᾽ ὁπότ᾽ ἄν σε δόμοι κεκύθωσι καὶ αὐλή. Cf. also Agam. 851 (above 
quoted ) and the restricted meaning referred to in Euripides (following). 


54 - The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Of one temple compare Ion 1275: 

ἀλλ᾽ οὔτε βωμὸς obre ᾿Απόλλωνος δόμος 
_ and verse 249: 

ἐγὼ δ᾽ ἰδοῦσα τούσδ᾽ ᾿Απόλλωνος δόμους. 

To draw any line of distinction in meaning in Euripides is 
clearly out of the question. ΤῸ him at least the plural is acon- , 
vention’ as such following instances show—Cyc. 129 (of the 
Cyclops’ cave’) : 

αὐτὸς δὲ Κύκλωψ ποῦ ᾽στιν ; ἢ δόμων ἔσω. 
So too verses 369-371 : 
νηλής, ὦ τλᾶμον ὅστις 
δωμάτων ἐφεστίους ξενικοὺς 
ἱκτῆρας ἐκθύει δόμων. 
The plural is of a chest in Alc. 160-161 : 
ἐκ δ᾽ ἑλοῦσα κεδρίνων δόμων 
ἐσθῆτα κόσμον T εὐπρεπῶς ἠσκήσατο. 
Euripides probably had in mind a similar usage in Hesiod, 
where δόμοισιν is Pandora’s jar.* 

(2) δώματα. 

In Aeschylus the plural is commonly of singular significance.” 
There is no certain case of δῶμα for one room.® 





1The conclusion is based also upon the statistics above and the free use 
of the plural even when the singular would easily serve metre. 

2 See also under δώματα. 

5 Previous to this play, ἄντρα had been often used of one cave on the 
analogy of δόμοι, δώματα. Now in turn δόμοι, δώματα and στέγαι are all ap- 
plied to the Cyclops’ cave. Volp (p. 44) thinks δόμοι is here used ‘‘ per 
iocum,’’ but this would hardly be justifiable in verse 371. 

4 μούνη δ᾽ αὐτόθι "EdXmls ἐν ἀρρήκτοισι δόμοισιν 

ἔνδον ἔμιμνε πίθου ὑπὸ χείλεσιν, οὔδε θύραζε ἐξέπτη (Works and Days, v. 96ff. ) 
5 The mss. reading of Kum. 827 f. is: 
καὶ κλῇδας οἶδα δωμάτων μόνη θεῶν, 
ἐν ᾧ κεραυνός ἐστιν ἐσφραγισμένος 

6 Casaubon (followed by Hermann, Wecklein, Sidgwick and others): 
emends to δώματος. Triclinius (followed by Schitz and Butler) change 
merely the relative, reading ἐν οἷ. Hermann says: ‘‘ Nimirum non in 
pluribus, sed in uno conclavi fulmen conclusum fuisse credibile est (Vol. 
II, p. 633). Wecklein objecting to ἐν ols says: ‘‘ Minder wahrscheinlich 
und passend hat Triclinios nachher ἐν ols geschrieben. Denn der Begriff 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 55 


Both numbers appear in the meaning of household, family, as 
in Agam. 1468: 
δαῖμον, ὃς ἐμπίτνεις δώμασι, 
Frag. 156, 2: 
ὅταν κακῶσαι δῶμα παμπήδην θέλῃ. 

For ¢emple the singular appears once (Eum. 242) and the plural 
twice (Eum. 178, Supp. 291). 

Sophocles: Here too the plural regularly refers to one 
structure.’ 

In the sense of family, OT. 1226: 

εἴπερ ἔτι τῶν Λαβδακιδείων ἐντρέπεσθε δωμάτων. 

In verse 71 of the same play the plural is applied to the temple 
of Phoebus, while in verse 29 the singular is collective in the 
sense of 7hebes—dapa Καδμεῖον. 

In El. 110 the singular is used of the home of Hades.’ 

Euripides : 

The same observations in general apply to Euripides as those 
concerning Aeschylus and Sophocles. The notion of house as a 
collection of rooms stands out clearly enough, apparently, in 
Herc. Fur. 955: 

ὃ δ᾽ εἷρπ᾽ ἄνω τε καὶ κάτω κατὰ στέγας 

μέσον δ᾽ ἐς ἀνδρῶν᾽ εἰσπεσὼν Νίσου πόλιν 

ἥκειν ἔφασκε, δωμάτων εἴσω βεβώς. 
So also Alc. 546: 

ἡγοῦ σύ, τῶνδε δωμάτων (rooms) ἐξωπίους 

ξενῶνας οἴξας. 
Like δόμοι, δώματα is used of the Cyclops’ cave in Cyc. 370.° 
(3) οἴκοι. 








Sictnach* ’ ist besser als un Begriff ‘Haus’.’’ The Homeric use of δῶμα. 
(chamber) may justify the singular relative here, the construction being 
κατὰ σύνεσιν. The remarks of Hermann and Wecklein only re-enforce belief’ 
in such a probability. 

'E.g. OT. 531, 925, 951, 1395. 

2 Cf. 0 251—6Gp’ ᾿Αἰδαο : in this connection the plural does not appear in. 
Homer, but often both δόμος and «δόμοι. 

3 See under δόμοι above. 


56 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Aeschylus’: οἶκοι is largely confined to the Oresteia. The 
singular shares freely with the two meanings of house (literal), 
and family (as e.g. in the expression ‘‘ House of the Hohenzol- 
ern’’) ; the plural too is used in both senses.’ 

-Agam. 961 has been a source of trouble to some commentators’? : 
οἶκος δ᾽ ὑπάρχει τῶνδε σὺν θεοῖς ἄναξ | ἔχειν. 

οἶκος in the meaning of a storage-room, if so taken, is easily 
transferred to the store-supply itself. In Kum. 459 the singular 
appears in the meaning of zative-land. 

Sophocles has both numbers in the sense of famzly* as well as 
that of house®; also in the sense of native-land.6 Neither here 
nor in Aeschylus does it ever have the meaning of temple. 

‘The phrase κατ᾽ οἶκον appears nine times with the force of 
intus,' and twice with the meaning of domi, in patria." 

Sophocles does not assume to use the plural of a cave as does 
Euripides. The metre would not oppose οἴκους in Phil. 159. 
Euripides alone applies the word to a ¢emple—Ion 458, 
Πύθιον οἶκον. He has it also as an equivalent of ἄντρον in Cyc. 525, 

θεὸς Sev ἀσκῷ πῶς γέγηθ᾽ οἴκους ἔχων ; 
Similarly Cyc. 597, χώρει ἐς οἴκους. 

(4) μέλαθρα " first meant cross-beam, then roof. Already in 

Homer it had the wider sense of dwelling. ὃ 





‘For οἶκοι meaning one chamber in Homer, see under δόμοι. 

* The singular occurs—Agam. 18, 37, 136, 732, 867, 961, 1532; Cho. 579; 
Eum. 459, 751, 895; Prom. 387, Sept. 190, Frag. 192; plural—Agam. 35, 
156, 237. 344, 427, 761, 1481, 1524, 1554, Cho. 76, 719, 765, 862, 934, Eum. 
239, 417, 452, 1044, Pers. 230, 524, 833, 862. 

’ Porson, Dindorf, Bloomfield and others emend to οἴκοις, but Hermann, 
Verrall, Sidgwick retain mss. reading. 

‘Co. Frag. 856 (sing.) with Ant. 594 (plur. Ny 

5 Cf. Trach. 1066, OT. 1491 (sing. ) with El. 1309, O T. 112 (plur.). 

δ Sing. 7, plur. 12. The usual phrases are és οἶκον (Phil. 240), és οἴκους (ib. 
311), πρὸς οἶκον (ib. 488), πρὸς οἴκους (ib. 1368). 

El. 929, 1147, 1473 ; OC. 343; Trach. 531, 689, 934. 

8 Aj. 1021, Phil. 469. 

9Uses : Homer sing. 7; Aesch. sing. 1, plur. 11 (Agam 116, 518, 770, 


851, 957, 1333, 1575, Cho. 343, 789, 1069, Frag. 386) ; Soph. sing. 1, plur. 4 
(Phil. 147, 1428, Ant. 117, El. 1268) ; Eur. sing. 16, plur. 76. 


1 640: αἴδεσθαι δὲ μέλαθρον. But Witte cites a case of the plural, Pindar 
Pyth. V, 40 (op. cit., p. 25). 





The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 57 


Aeschylus : 


Here it is always of a literal dwelling and in the plural, 

except Agam. 1434 where the sense is figurative ; 

ov μοι φόβου μέλαθρον᾽ ἐλπὶς ἐμπατεῖ. 
Even the plural is apparently restricted in its meaning, some- 
times, to that of Aall, apartments, as. e.g. in Agam. 851, 
és μέλαθρα καὶ δόμους ἐφεστίους and verse 957, εἶμ᾽ és δόμων μέλαθρα. 

Sophocles : 

Both numbers appear in the sense of cave. 

Compare Phil. 1453 : 

χαῖρ᾽, ὦ μέλαθρον ξύμφρουρον ἐμοί 
and verses 146-147: 
ὅποταν δὲ μόλῃ 
δεινὸς ὁδίτης τῶνδ᾽ ἐκ μελάθρων. 

Euripides : 

The word appears twice of the Cyclops’ cave.’ 

(5) στέγαι." 

Aeschylus * : 

The plural is usually synonymous with δώματα, which it follows 
by analogy. The plurals in Eum. 56, and Prom. 7o9—gypsy 
wagon-homes—are true ones. 

The singular occurs of one chamber in Frag. 124, 2—év 
ἀνδρείᾳ στέγῃ. 

Sophocles : 

The stereotyped phrase κατὰ στέγας is common’ (compare 


κατ᾽ οἶκον). 





1 Weil needlessly emends to plural. Wecklein brackets 1435-1438. 

*Cyc. 491, 511. Where the plural is used for a cave, it is always genitive. 
The genitive singular of the word is avoided both in Homer and Tragedy, 
occurring but once in the latter—Euripides. 

3 The neuter noun στέγος (tectum) is non-Homeric, but occurs in Tragedy, 
Aesch. 2, Soph. 3, Eur. 8. Strangely it invariably resists analogical in- 
fluence in favor of the plural and remains singular. 

* Occurs here sing. 6, plur. 4; Soph. sing. 21, plur. 10; in Eur. common in 
both numbers, being plural for singular 36 times (see Kummerer, p. 8). 

5 OT. 637, OC. 339, El. 282, 1308, Phil. 1262. 


58 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


The singular clearly means one room in OT. ‘1262: 

ἐκ δὲ πυθμένων 
ἔκλινε κοῖλα κλῇθρα κἀμπίπτει στέγῃ" 

The singular’ is twice used of Philoctetes’ cave and the plural 
once (Phil. 286, 1262 respectively). . 

Euripides : 

- Both plural and singular are used of the Cyclops’ cave.’ 

Even in the plural the word seems to mean one chamber, Med. 
1142-3°: 
ἐγὼ δὲ καὐτὸς ἡδονῆς ὕπο 

στέγας. γυναικῶν σὺν τέκνοις ἅμ᾽ ἐσπόμην. 
(6) ὄροφοι“ naturally follows στέγας in plural uses. 
Aeschylus Supp. 647-8 : 
τὸν οὔτις ἂν δόμος ἔχων 
ἐπ᾽ ὀρόφων μιαίνοντα. 

Compare the two following from Euripides—Ion 1142 : πρῶτον 
μὲν ὀρόφῳ πτέρυγα περιβάλλει πέπλων (the roof-tree of the tent) 
and verses 89-90 : 

σμύρνης δ᾽ ἀνύδρου καπνὸς εἰς ὀρόφους (2.6. ναόν) 
Φοίβου πέτεται. 
(7) Πέργαμα" (arces). 
Aeschylus Prom. 955-56 : 
νέον νέοι κρατεῖτε καὶ δοκεῖτε δὴ 
ναίειν ἀπενθῇ πέργαμ(α) .° 
Phil. 346-47 : 
ὡς οὐ θέμις γίγνοιτ᾽, ἐπεὶ κατέφθιτο 


πατὴρ ἐμός, τὰ πέργαμ᾽ ἄλλον ἢ p ἑλεῖν. 





1 The singular means grave Ant. 888, and dungeon ἘΠ. 282. 

* Cf. (γε. 91 (sing. ) and ib. 29 (plur.), So too the plural in IT. 263. 

8 90 also Med. 1164, but cf ib. 1180 for the singular. 

‘Occurs in Homer only © 451, where it is a collective singular of reeds 
Sor thatching ; Aesch. plur. 1; Soph. sing. 1; Eur. sing. 1, plur. 1. 

5 Homer sing. 3 (masc. forms); Aesch, plur. 1; Soph. plur. 4; Eur. only 
plural, except Tro. 1065, IA. 773. Cf Herod. VII, 43 : τὸ Πριάμου Πέργαμον. 

6 According to Servius (note, Vergil Aeneid II 556) we would have here 
a true plural : ‘‘ propter Pergama quae altissima fuerunt, ex quibus omnia 
alta aedificia pergama vocantur sicut Aeschylus dicit’’. (Cf Ebeling Lex. 


Soph. ). 


— - 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 59 


In Euripides also the plural is not infrequently used of one 

citadel,’ and there as elsewhere is probably poetic. 
2, 
THE TEMPLE. 

Analogous to the above are the frequent poetic uses of the 
plural for temple. As has already been seen the words above are 
often used for a temple in both numbers.* The plural usage is 
naturally extended to words whose regular meaning is temple. 
In Homer, however, no such influence was effective. 





Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 





| Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 


























ἀνάκτορα ae oe aie 3 ” 23 | 133 
(Lit. king’s dwelling) | 
, , | Ϊ 4 
ναοί (νηοί) | 12 14 o/| 0 2 45 Passim ὃ 





The adjectival substantives χρηστήρια and μαντεῖα which occur 
in the sense of temple, shrine are for convenience listed here. 
(3) χρηστήρια is non-Homeric, and outside of Euripides (2.e. 
in Aeschylus and Sophocles’) is found only in the plural. 
Aeschylus Eum. 194-195 : 
οὐ χρηστηρίοις 
ἐν τοῖσδε πλησίοις τρίβεσθαι μύσος. 





‘As And. 292, Hel, 384, IA. 589, 762, 1576, Tro. 598, 851, 1295, 1325, Or. 
1388, Phoen. 1098. 

? Aeschylus (δ. g.) does not have ἀνάκτορα or ναοί at all, but generally em- 
ploys δόμος or δόμοι instead. 

3 Frag. 690, 4 ; ἢ τῆς ἀνάγκης 

οὐδὲν ἐμβριθέστερον, ὑφ᾽ ἧς τὸ κρυφθὲν 
ἐκφανεῖς ἀνάκτορον. But Wecklein is apparently right in reading 
ἀνακτόρων. 

‘Sing. And. 43, Tro. 330; plur. And. 117, 380, 1111, 1157, Ion 55, 1224, 
IT. 41, 66, 635, Rhes. 516, Supp. 88, Tro. 15, 85. 

5 True plurals. 

6 Some instances of the plural of one temple are IT. 34, 88, 129, 138, 406, 
460, 1215, 1227, Supp. 2, Ion 97, 111, 115, 178, 314, 498, 555, 683, 1366, 1384, 
xh 7. 

TAesch. 4 (Sept. 230, 450—of victims; Eum. 194, Sept. 748—of a 
temple) ; Soph. 3 (Aj. 220—of victims ; OC. 604, 1331—of a temple); Eur. 
sing. 5, plur. 11 (as in Ion 38, 299, 409. IT. 1261, And. rrr). 


60 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Ion 299: 
σὺν ἀνδρὶ δ᾽ ἥκεις ἢ μόνη χρηστήρια ; 
With this compare Med. 667: 
Φοίβου παλαιὸν ἐκλιπὼν χρηστήριον." 

(4) μαντεῖα means (1) oracular response, (2) seat of an oracle: 
in the former sense is the lone Homeric use (μ 272) which is 
plural. 

Aeschylus’ Prom. 831 (of one shrine) : 

μαντεῖα θᾶκός τ᾽ ἐστὶ θεσπρωτοῦ Διός. 
Ion 42: 

προφῆτις ἐσβαίνουσα μαντεῖον θεοῦ, 
with which compare verse 66: 


ἥκουσι πρὸς μαντεῖ ᾿Απόλλωνος τάδε. 


3. 
TENT, CHAMBER, CAVE, LAIR. 

The leading words in this group are three: κλισίαι, θάλαμοι, 
ἄντρα." ‘The plural of the first often occurs for the singular in 
Homer.‘ Thisistrue once of θάλαμοι, but ἄντρα is a singular only in 
Homer. As will be seen there is a strong movement toward the 
plural in Tragedy—in the case of these as well as numerous 
others subjected to analogical influence. 











(a) Tent. 
BC nae Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 
Sing, Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
κλισίαι 66 54 I ο 1 I I 3 
σκηναί ο ο ο 2 2 3 4 10 
σκηνώματα ο. ο ο gd ο fo) I 3 





























1Other singulars: Ion 512, 1336. 

1 Sing. 1 (Eum, 4—oracular seat), plur. 2; but in Sophocles sing. 2 in 
sense of oracular seat—El. 33, OT. 243. 

* See Ebeling Lex. Hom., p. 824. 


‘The Homeric figures for the three words mentioned are as follows : 
kolai—Sing. 66, plur. 54. 
θάλαμοι----διπρ. 64, plur. 7, 
dvrpa—Sing. 12, plur. o. 


5 The form here is σκηνήματα. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 61 


(1) κλισώι. 
Aj. 191-192': 
μὴ μή μ᾿ ἄναξ, ἐθ᾽ ὧδ᾽ ἐφάλοις κλισίαις 
ὄμμ᾽ ἔχων κακὰν φάτιν ἄρῃ. 
Euripides has no poetic plural of κλισίαι in this sense, but in 
another sense it occurs.’ 

(2) σκηναί. 

In all the five uses here—both singular and plural, the tent of 
Ajax is referred to. 

As for Euripides, compare the singular of Hec. 53, Rhes. 45, 
with the plural of Tro. 139, 176: in every case the reference is 
to Agamemnon’s tent.* 

(3) σκηνώματα. 

The plurals of Cyc. 324 and Ion 1133 are singular in meaning. 


(b) Chamber, apartment. 




















_ Homer — Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 
Sing. Plur Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Pior: | Sing. Plur. 
on 

θάλαμοι 64 | 7 Ree wae sh oe | 7 | 31 
ἑδώλια ΠῚ τὸ ο 2 | ο ἄν (eee, 2 
αὐλαί 45 | ὃ 146 | 3 4 | 13 | 15 
ἀνδρῶνες ο | ο ο 2 | ο ο | ο oO 
παρθενῶνες ο ο O°) "a | ο ο | ο 8 
ξενῶνες ο ο of; @ | ο ο | ὍΣΣ} =2 
νυμφεῖα ο | re) ο | ο | 2 3 | o | ο 
εἱρκταί. ΓΞ ὦ Pee Of 1 0 5 FOr ἢ Ὁ 2 





| | | 








1Cf. the sing. ib. 1407. 
* E.g. Alc. 993-94, where the original force appears (κλένω) : 
_ γεφνναιοτάταν δὲ πασᾶν 
ἐζεύξω κλισίαις ἄκοιτιν. 
530 Eur. IA. 1, where δόμων equals σκηνῆς. 
* Similarly the plurals of Ion 982, 1129. 
δ΄ True plural. 


62 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


(1) θάλαμοι." 

In Aeschylus the plurals are probably true ones’; so also in 
Sophocles.* 

In Euripides the plural is more often poetic then not‘, being 
used in particular of a bridal chamber. ‘The same bridal bower 
is referred to by the singular and the plural— 

Alc. 175 : κἄπειτα θάλαμον εἰσπεσοῦσα καὶ λέχος. 

Verses 186-188 : στείχει προνωπὴς ἐκπεσοῦσα δεμνίων 
καὶ πολλὰ θαλάμων" ἐξιοῦσ᾽ ἐπεστράφη 
κἄρριψεν αὕτην αὖθις εἰς κοίτην πάλιν. 

(2) ἑδώλια." 

Only the plural appears in Tragedy. 

In Aeschylus the word always equals θάλαμοι. 

Soph. El. 1391-3 deserves mention : 

παράγεται yap ἐνέρων 

δολιόπους ἀρωγὸς εἴσω στέγας 

ἀρχαιόπλουτα πατρὸς εἰς ἑδώλια, 
where ἑδώλια is best taken, probably, as meaning an inner 
apartment and not as synonynious with στέγας. 

Euripides has the word only in the meaning of a guarter-deck." 

(3) αὐλαί. ὃ 





} Poetic plural ψ 41-42: 

ἡμεῖς δὲ μυχῷ θαλάμων εὐπήκτων ἥμεθ᾽ ἀτυζόμεναι. But in Z 248 the plural is 
equivalent to δώματα. 

2 Kum. 1004, Pers, 624. 

5In Ant. 804 θάλαμον equals τύμβον. 

* E.g. And. 104, 109, 112, IT. 209 Hipp. 182, Tro. 854, Bacch. 95, 1370, 
Hel. 1354, Hec. 919, Med. 141, Phoen. 1541. 

5 Paley and others retain θάλαμον. but Euripidean usage strengthens the 
view of Nauck and others who read θαλάμων. 

δ Occurs Sept. 455, Cho. 71; Soph, El. 1398, Aj. 1277, Soph. Frag. 141 
(the last two being true plurals) ; Cyc. 238, Hel. 1571. 

Hel. 1571: ‘Edévn καθέζετ᾽ ἐν μέσοις ἑδωλίοις, 1.6. the raised quarter-deck at 
the stern of the vessel. See Jebb’s discussion of this point in note to Soph. 
Aj., p. 237. Stephanus’ Thesaurus quotes Pollux thus on ἑδώλιον : “‘ rpwpa- 
τικὸν ἐφ᾽ οὗ κάθηνται." But in Herod. I, 24, Arion and the officers are on the 
ἑἐδώλια at the stern. 

SIn Aesch. but once and singular—Avds αὐλήν (Prom. 122; just as in 
Homer. ὃ 74---: νὸς αὐλή. 


————— se 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 63 


Sophocles : 

As for Phil. 153, the chorus are not yet aware of Philoctetes’ 
cave-dwelling and the plural may not be called singular in 
meaning. The plural has an indefinite force in Ant. 785: 

ἐν τ᾽ ἀγρονόμοις αὐλαῖς (‘‘in pastoral wilds’). Elsewhere 
the plural is of one chamber— 

Trach. goI-o2 : 

καὶ παῖδ᾽ ἐν αὐλαῖς εἶδε κοῖλα δέμνια 
στόρνυντα (the single αὐλή). 
Ant. 944-46: 
ἔτλα καὶ Δανάας οὐράνιον φῶς 
ἀλλάξαι δέμας ἐν χαλκοδέτοις αὐλαῖς ' 
κρυπτομένα δ᾽ ἐν τυμβήρει θαλάμῳ κατεζεύχθη. : 

The poetic plural does not occur in Euripides. 

(4) ἀνδρῶνες. 

Agam. 242-244 ch. : 

ἐπεὶ πολλάκις 

πατρὸς κατ᾽ ἀνδρῶνας εὐτραπέζους 

ἔμελψεν (the dining room). 
Cho. 712: 

ἄγ᾽ αὐτὸν εἰς ἀνδρῶνας εὐξένους δόμων (the guest-chamber). 
(5) παρθενῶνες. 
Prom. 645-46 of Io’s room) : 

dei yap ὄψεις ἔννυχοι πωλεύμεναι 

ἐς παρθενῶνας τοὺς ἐμοὺς παρηγόρουν κτὲ. 
Phoen. 193-4: 
Tlar.—® τέκνον, εἴσβα δῶμα καὶ κατὰ στέγας 

ἐν παρθενῶσι μίμνε σοῖς (Antigone’s room). 

Similarly IA. 1174-5: 

KAvr.— ὅταν θρόνους τῆσδ᾽ εἰσίδω πάντας κενούς, 

κενοὺς δὲ παρθενῶνας (Iphigenia’s room). 





‘Described by Horace (Car. III, 6) as ¢urris aenea. ‘‘ Pherecydes (ap. 
Schol. Apoll. Rhod. 4, 1091) refers to it as a brazen chamber (θάλαμον 


χαλκοῦν) made underground in the court-yard (αὐλή) of his house’’ (Jebb, 


mote s. v., p. 170). 


64 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Orestes speaks to Iphigenia of the spear hid in her room in 
Iphigenia among the Tauri 826: 
(λόγχην) ἐν παρθενῶσι τοῖσι σοῖς κεκρυμμένην. 
(6) ξενῶνες.᾽ἢ 
The plural most likely refers to but one chamber? in Alc. 543 : 
χωρὶς ξενῶνές εἰσιν ot σ᾽ εἰσάξομεν 
and verses 546-7 : 
ἡγοῦ σύ, τῶνδε δωμάτων ἐξωπίους 
ξενῶνας οἴξας. 
(7) νυμφεῖα * has the meaning οὗ bridal-chamber in Trach. 920, 
while the singular means the same in Ant. 891, 1205. 
(8) εἱρκταί. * 
The two plurals occurring in Tragedy are poetic—Bacch. 497 = 
εἱρκταῖσι τ᾽ ἔνδον σῶμα σὸν φυλάξομεν 
and verse 549 of the same play : 
βρόμιον σκοτίαισι κρυπτὸν εἱρκταῖς. 
(c) Cave, lair. 
Influence in favor of the plural did not affect the words of the 
following table till after Homer. 











Homer | Aeschylus Sophocles | Euripides 

Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
ἄντρα 12 ο | 2 4 I 5 II 27 
avAa ο oO | ο ο 3 Ι Ι 2 
θαλάμαι Ι ο | ο ο ο oO ο 3 
σηκοί ὃ Ι 5 κι Ὁ ο I ο 5 I 


























'CG&. Paley on Alc. 546, p. 272. 

?So Kummerer, op. cit., p.g: he, following Vitruvius, mentions ξενῶνες 
as comprehending ‘‘triclinia et cubicula commoda.”’ 

3 See νυμφεῖα under ‘‘ Abstracts.”’ 

*Meaning prison. Cf. ἕρκη p. 88, to which the plural may be analogous. 

*>The meaning and use of onxés in Attic Prose (cf Speech of Lysias Περὶ 
τοῦ σηκοῦ) indicates that the plural here is on the analogy of ἄντρα, θαλάμαι. 
and the like. In Homer it means pen, fold. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 65 


(1) ἄντρα. 

In Aeschylus there appears to be no sure case of the plural for 
the singular, for example— 

Prom. 133-134: 

κτύπου yap ἀχὼ χάλυβος διῇξεν ἄντρων | μυχόν. ἢ 
Verse 452 : ἄντρων ἐν μυχοῖς ' ἀνηλίοις. 

Sophocles’ : 

The notion is singular in two instances— 

Phil. 1263: 

τίς αὖ παρ᾽ ἄντροις θόροβος ἵσταται βοῆς ; 
OC. 1569-71 : 
ταῖσι πολυξένοις 
εὐνᾶσθαι κνυζεῖσθαί τ᾿ ἐξ dvtpwv.* 
λόγος αἰὲν ἔχει. 

Euripides *: : 

Here the plural regularly applies to but one cave. The cave 
of the Cyclops is designated by the singular 3 times, by the 
plural 14 times; while the cave in Ion is mentioned in the singu- 
_ lar 6 times, plural 3 times. Such a discrepancy in ratio for the 
two plays affords room for conjecture as to whether the nature 
of the two caves mentioned, or the difference in the date of the 
composition of the Ion and Cyclops, could have had any bearing 
on the result. 

(2) αὔλια." 





1 But note the Enallage of number in μυχός, See also ib. 301, 352. The 
plural may suggest the various recesses. 

3 Occurs sing. Phil, 27 ; plur. Aj. 413, Phil. 1263, Ant. 883, OT. 477, OC. 
1571, Frag. 5830—where Ellendt rightly says: ‘‘ év ἄντροις pro ἐν ἄστροις certi 
Bergki emendatio.”’ 

3 Cf. Vergil’s Aeneid VI, 417-418.: 

Cerberus haec ingens latratu regna trifauci 
Personat adverso recubans immanis in antro. 

*Sing: Cyc. 87, 426, 480, Ion 17, 892, 937, 949, 958, 1494, Hel. 424, 607; 
Plur. : And. 1224, Bacch. 123, Cyc. 22, 35, 47, 82, 100, 118, I91, 206, 224, 
252, 255, 288, 375, 516, Hel. 475, 486, 573, Ion 288, 502, 1400, IA. 1082, IT. 
107, Phoen. 239, Rhes. 970, Frag. 421. 


5 The singular appears Hom. Hym. Merc. 103—“‘‘ cottage.”’ 


66 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 


Sophocles has αὔλια only in Philoctetes where in each case it 
refers to Philoctetes’ cave '— 
Verses 1149-50: 
φυγᾷ μ᾽ οὐκέτ᾽ ax’ αὐλίων 
πελᾶτε.7 
In Euripides both numbers occur of the Cyclops, as the follow- 
ing in the Cyclops show— 
Verses 345-46 : 
ἀλλ᾽ ἕρπετ᾽ εἴσω, τῷ κατ᾽ αὔλιον ἢ θεῷ 
iv’ ἀμφὶ βωμὸν στάντες εὐωχῆτέ με, 
and verse 593: 
dards δ᾽ ἔσωθεν αὐλίων ὠθεῖ καπνόν. 
(3) θαλάμαι." 
Euripides has the plural for the cave of Trophonius—Ion 
392-394 : 
εἰσορῶ yap εὐγενῆ πόσιν 
Ἐοῦθον πέλας δὴ τόνδε τὰς Τροφωνίου 
λιπόντα θαλάμας κτέ. 
Phoen. 921- (the dragon’s den) : 
δεῖ τόνδε θαλάμαις, οὗ δράκων ὃ γηγενὴς 
ἐγένετο Δίρκης ναμάτων ἐπίσκοπος. 
Eur. Supp. 980 (of a grave) : 
καὶ μὴν θαλάμας τάσδ᾽ ἐσορῶ δὴ 
Καπανέως. 
(4) σηκοί .° 
In Euripides both the singular (Phoen. 1009, of a dragon’s 
lair) and the plural occur in the sense of θαλάμαι. 





'Sing. ib. 19, 954, 1087 ;- plur. ib. 1149. 
2 Jebb emends the mss. to read thus: _ 
μηκέτ᾽ ἀπ’ αὐλίων φυγᾷ 
πηδᾶτε, in which case αὐλίων of course is /airs of beasts, a true plural. 
While πελᾶτε is strange here, it is not impossible; andif the mss. be fol- 
lowed, αὐλίων is best taken as above suggested. 
3 Cf. the common phrase κατ᾽ οἶκον. 
4 Homer € 432 θαλάμης. 
5 The singular in Phil. 1328—‘‘ shrine.”’ 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 67 


Ion 300 (of the cave of Trophonius): 
σηκοῖς δ᾽ ἐνστρέφει Τροφωνίου. 
When the meaning is that of a sacred enclosure, even when 
referring to a city, city-walls, the singular is used. Kummerer’s 
suggestion, therefore, that the one plural here is on the analogy 
of τείχη; πύργοι cannot be right ; rather ναοί or ἄντρα. 
4. 
THRONE, SEAT. 





Homer —§ Aeschylus _ Sophocles Euripides 

















‘Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. Sing. | Plur. 
| | 
θρόνοι πο δ ἢν ag τῷ tet 1 Ὁ 6 | 15 
θᾶκοι" 7 at Sd τῷ τ Rae ae oe I 8 
ἕδραι Ἐν ον aa De A τσὴ} ἃ 26 21 
ἕδρανα ΕΠ Ὁ er eo ae 0 Fee Wel eam I 
(1) θρόνοι." 


In Homer the sense is always literal and the plural is nowhere 
to be found for the singular.° 

As for Tragedy, the earlier uses of the plural in an apparently 
singular meaning involve, I believe, a concept which is really 
plural, just asin the case of σκῆπτρα" The following studies 
seem to prove this a general principle. If Euripides uses the 
plural of one ordinary seat, it may be said that this is not the 
only instance where with him convention has superseded pre- 
cedent or logic. 





1See Supp. 30, Bacch. 11, Rhes. 591, Phoen. 1751. 
? Homer—@Gxos, θόωκος. 
3 True plurals. 
‘In origin, of literal sense: )/dhra—support; hence Opbvos—seat, chair ; 
then ‘‘ sella excelsior et honoratior.’’ 
5FEig. Ἐ 238 (notice δῶρα) : 
δῶρα δέ τοι δώσω καλὸν θρόνον, ἄφθιτον αἰεί. 
ὅ8ε6 pp. 37-39. 


68 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Aeschylus : 

In the singular here the word has its literal sense except in 
Agam. 982 where the meaning is figurative’ : 

θάρσος εὐπειθὲς ἵζει φρενὸς φίλον θρόνον, 
as also Sept. 409-10: 

μάλ᾽ εὐγενῆ τε καὶ τὸν Αἰσχύνης θρόνον 

τιμῶντα. 

In Supp. 208 the Coryphaeus is speaking for the whole chorus : 

θέλοιμ᾽ ἂν ἤδη σοὶ πέλας θρόνους ἔχειν. 

The following citations serve to show that the plural is not 
merely the throne but has a much fuller concept,—it connotes 
the prerogatives, rights, privileges of the royal office; the ab- 
stract notion in fact is paramount. 

Prom. 767 : 
ἦ πρὸς δάμαρτος ἐξίσταται θρόνων" ; 
also verses 909-10: 
ὃς αὐτὸν ἐκ τυραννίδος 
θρόνων τ᾽ ἄϊστον ἐκβαλεῖ. 
and verse gI2: 
nv (Apa) ἐκπίπτων ἠρᾶτο δηναίων θρόνων. 
Pers. 774-5: 
πέμπτος δὲ Μάρδις ἦρξεν, αἰσχύνη πάτρᾳ 
θρόνοισί τ᾽ ἀρχαίοισι. 
Cho. 572: 

| κἀκεῖνον ἐν θρόνοισιν εὑρήσω πατρός, 
also verse 975: 

σεμνοὶ μὲν ἦσαν ἐν θρόνοις τόθ᾽ ἥμενοι (of Aegisthus and Cly- 
temnestra*). 

Kum. 18: 


9 sf a ,ὕ > ,ὔ 
ἵζει τέταρτον τοῖσδε μάντιν ἐν θρόνοις. 





‘This force of the word is to be distinguished from that where the plural 
is used. 


vy 


2 Cf. ib. 757: ἢ γάρ ror’ ἔστιν ἐκπεσεῖν ἀρχῆς Ala. 

* The idea here is particularly that of authority usurped rather than one 
of ‘‘sitting in the seats’’ as it is usually translated: ἡμένων would seem 
more natural, if such were the thought. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Verse 29: 

ἔπειτα μάντις ἐν θρόνοις καθιζάνω. 
Verses 46-47: 

πρόσθεν δέ τ᾽ ἀνδρὸς τοῦδε θαυμαστὸς λόχος 

εὕδει γυναικῶν ἐν θρόνοισιν ἥμενος .” 
Verse 511: 

ὦ Δίκα, ὦ θρόνοι τ᾽ ᾿Ερινύων, 
Verse 616: 

οὐπώποτ᾽ εἶπον μαντικοῖσιν ἐν θρόνοις. 
Especially noteworthy is Supp. 374-75: 

μονοσκήπτροισι δ᾽ ἐν θρόνοις ' χρέος 

πᾶν ἐπικραΐνεις. 


Sophocles ® : 


The above observation applies in general to Sophocles also. 


Ant. 165-6: 
τοῦτο μὲν τὰ Λαΐου 
σέβοντος εἰδὼς εὖ θρόνων ἀεὶ κράτη. 
Verse 173: 
ἐγὼ κράτη δὴ πάντα καὶ θρόνους ἔχω. 
OC. 237: 
τῆσδ᾽ (γῆς), ἧς ἐγὼ κράτη τε καὶ θρόνους νέμω. 
Verses 1267-68 : 
ἀλλ᾽ ἔστι yap καὶ Ζηνὶ σύνθακος θρόνων 
Αἰδὼς ἐπ᾽ ἔργοις πᾶσι." 
Verses 1293-4: 
τοῖς σοῖς πανάρχοις οὕνεκ᾽ ἐνθακεῖν θρόνοις 
γονῇ πεφυκὼς ἠξίουν γεραίτερος. 
Trach. 362-63: 
ἐπεστρατεύει πατρίδα THY ταύτης, ἐν 7 
τὸν Εὔρυτον τόνδ᾽ εἶπε δεσπόζειν θρόνων. 





1Cf. And. 699: 
σεμνοὶ δ᾽ ἐν ἀρχαῖς ἥμενοι κατὰ πτόλιν, 


and also ib. Or. 897. 


3 Note that ἐν θρόνοις comprises half the uses in Aeschylus. 


69 


’The only singular is OT. 161, where the word is best taken as 


meaning the chair of Artemis’ statue : 
Αρτεμιν ἃ κυκλόεντ᾽ ἀγορᾶς θρόνον εὐκλέα θάσσει. 


* Cf. ib. 1382 and Ant. 796-97 : τῶν μεγάλων πάρεδρος ἐν ἀρχαῖς | θεσμῶν. 


70 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


OC. 367-68 : 
πρὶν μὲν yap αὐτοῖς Hv ἔρως Κρέοντί re 
θρόνους ἐᾶσθαι μηδὲ χραίνεσθαι πόλιν. 
Verse 375: 
τὸν πρόσθε γεννηθέντα ἸΠΤολυνείκη θρόνων ἀποστερίσκει. 
Verse 1380-81 ; 
τοιγὰρ TO σὸν θάκημα καὶ τοὺς σοὺς θρόνους 
κρατοῦσυ--- 
where the word seems to pass entirely into the abstract, in con- 
trast with θάκημα '—the seat. 
OT. 399-400 : 
δοκῶν θρόνοις 
παραστατήσειν τοῖς Κρεοντείοις πέλας .--- 
where the meaning must be more than literal. 7Zivesias thinks 
to have a controlling hand in the new administration, is the idea. 
θρόνοι occurs here three times in close connection with σκῆπτρα. 
OC. 425-6: 
ὡς οὔτ᾽ ἂν ὃς viv σκῆπτρα Kal θρόνους ἔχει 
μείνειεν, 
Verses 448-40: 
τὼ δ᾽ ἀντὶ τοῦ φύσαντος εἱλέσθην θρόνους 
καὶ σκῆπτρα κραίνειν καὶ τυραννεύειν χθονός, 
Verse 1354: 
ὅς γ᾽, ὦ κάκιστε, σκῆπτρα Kal θρόνους ἔχων. 
In two instances, however, the literal idea is strong where the 
plural is found (but see remarks under head of Metre)— 
El. 267-269 : 
ὅταν θρόνοις Αἴγισθον ἐνθακοῦντ᾽ ἴδω, 
τοῖσιν πατρῴοις, εἰσίδω δ᾽ ἐσθήματα 
φοροῦντ᾽ ἐκείνῳ ταὐτὰ κτέ. 
Soph. Frag. 144: 
σὺ δ᾽ ἐν θρόνοισι γραμμάτων πτυχὰς ἔχων 


, > » > ΄ὕ ἃ ΄ 
νεμ εἰ TLS οὐ πάρέστιν OS ξυνώμοσεν. 





' However, θάκημα may mean supplication here. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 71 


There is a sense of vaguenessin the plural when applied to the 
throne of Zeus, such as is noted in similar uses of ἕδραι and épava'— 
Ant. 1040-41 : 
ovd εἰ θέλουσ᾽ οἱ Ζηνὸς αἰετοὶ βορὰν 
φέρειν νιν ἁρπάζοντες ἐς Διὸς θρόνους, 
that is, the sky-throne of Zeus, symbolical of his manifold powers 
(κράτη), which comprehend all those of lesser potentates. 
Similarly those of an Agamemnon or an Oedipus embrace the 
chief command over various subordinate rulers. 
Euripides’ : 
Similar to the common uses of Aeschylus and Sophocles are 
those of the Phoen. 74-75: 
ἐπεὶ δ᾽ ἐπὶ ζυγοῖς 
καθέζετ᾽ ἀρχῆς, οὐ μεθίσταται θρόνων 
and Herc. Fur. 166-67: 
οἶδα yap κατακτανὼν 
Κρέοντα πατέρα τῆσδε καὶ θρόνους ἔχων. 
The abstract notion is not absent even in Ion 1571-73: 
χώρει, Κρέουσα, xeis θρόνους τυραννικοὺς 
ἵδρυσον, 
and verse 1618 : 
εἰς θρόνους SiLov παλαιοὺς κτὲ. 
Euripides has the singular twice * for the oracular throne of 
Apollo at Delphi, but the meaning is literal. 
Only in Cyc. 579 is the singular used of the throne of Zeus: 
tov Διός τε τὸν θρόνον */ λεύσσω. 
In the four citations following, dzvine-thrones are referred to 
by the plural, and in each case the notion is concrete— 





1\E.g. Cf. Prom. 389 : ἢ τῷ νέον θακοῦντι παγκρατεῖς ἕδρας, and also Aesch. 
Supp. 102—where Zeus works his will ἑδράνων ἐφ᾽ ἁγνῶν. 

* Sing. El. 315, I T. 1254, 1282, Herac. 754, Cyc. 574, Frag. 640, 2; plur. : 
Alc. 946, Hel. 241, Here. Fur. 167, 1127, Ion 1572, 1618. I A. 1174, I T. 1271, 
Med. 1163, 1170, 1190, Or. 1408, Phoen. 75, Rhes. 269, Tro. 836. 

3] T. 1254, 1282. 

*Perhaps the Cyclops in his drunken ecstasy saw a throne—to him ever 
so real and literal ! 


72 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


IT. 1270-1: 
ταχύπους (Φοῖβος) δ᾽ ἐς ἴοΟλυμπον ὁρμαθεὶς ἄναξ 
χέρα παιδνὸν dig’ ἐκ Διὸς θρόνων." 
Tro. 835-37: 
οὐ δὲ πρόσωπα vea- 
ρὰ χάρισι παρὰ Διὸς θρόνοις 
καλλιγάλανα τρέφεις. 
Hel. 241-43: 
ἁ δὲ χρυσέοις θρόνοις 
Διὸς ὑπαγκάλισμα σεμνὸν Ἥρα 
ο΄ τὸν ὠκύπουν ἔπεμψε Maiados γόνον. 
Here. Fur. 1127: 
ὦ Zed, wap’ Ἥρας ἄρ᾽ ὁρᾷς θρόνων τάδε ; 
In Rhes. 269 the plural may have merely the literal idea : 
οὐκ οἷσθα δῶμα τοὐμὸν ἢ θρόνους πατρός; 
Euripides reaches the extreme in using the plural for one literal 
seat— 
Med. 1163-4 : 
Karat ἀναστᾶσ᾽ ἐκ θρόνων διέρχεται. 
Med. 1169-70 : 
τς χωρεῖ τρέμουσα κῶλα καὶ μόλις φθάνει 
θρόνοισιν ἐμπεσοῦσα μὴ χαμαὶ πεσεῖν. 
Med. 1190: 
φεύγει δ᾽ ἀναστᾶσ᾽ ἐκ θρόνων πυρουμένη. 
Alc. 945-6: ἃ 
γυναικὸς εὐνὰς εὖτ᾽ ἂν εἰσίδω κενὰς 
θρόνους τ᾽ ἐν οἷσιν te, 
where θρόνους is as εὐνάς probably singular in sense. 
Or. 1408-9 : 
ot δὲ πρὸς θρόνους ἔσω 
μολόντες ἃς ἔγημ᾽ ὃ τοξότας Πάρις 
γυναικός. 


(2) θᾶκοι. 





!Badham’s emendation to ὄρεξεν εἰς Δὸν θρόνον (followed by Weil) is 
gratuitous. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 73 


Agam. 518-9: 
ἰὼ μέλαθρα βασιλέων, φίλαι στέγαι, 
σεμνοί τε θᾶκοι δαίμονές τ᾽ ἀντήλιοι, 
where the meaning is probably singular.’ 
The plural in OC. 9-10 may be corrupt : 
ἀλλ᾽ ὦ τέκνον θάκοισιν εἴ τινα βλέπεις 
ἢ πρὸς βεβήλοις ἢ πρὸς ἄλσεσιν θεῶν. 
The manuscript reading is hard to sustain.” Euripides has the 
plural in singular meaning, Phoen. 839-40 : 
οἰωνισματ᾽ ὀρνίθων μαθὼν 
θάκοισιν ἐν ἱεροῖσιν, 
with which compare Ant. 999-1000, where the same Tiresias is 
speaking : 
εἰς yap παλαιὸν θᾶκον ὀρνιθοσκόπον 
iLwv:* 
(3) pac." 
Prom. 389: 
ἢ τῷ νέον θακοῦντι παγκρατεῖς ἕδρας. 
The poetic plural here parallels certain uses of θρόνοι." 
Sophocles : 
In verse 2 of the Oedipus Tyrannus the plural is probably in- 
fluenced by the number of persons alluded to: 
τίνας ποθ᾽ ἕδρας τάσδε μοι θοάζετε κτὲέ. 





'So Sidgwick : ‘‘ The marble throne of the king at the door οἵ the pal- 
ace’’ (note 8. v., p. 33). 


2 Seidler (followed by the editors generally) reads θάκησιν. For a full dis- 
cussion see Jebb. 

5 See also Bacch. 347, Phoen. 840. 

* Cf. the Homeric @n—sing. 13, plur. 2 (A534, 581). The plural there 
means the council-chamber of the gods with its seats. The singular is used 
both for seat and abode—as E 360 ἀθανάτων ἕδος. One would expect the 
plural in Tragedy along with ἕδραι, in the same meaning as ἕδραι, but it as- 
- sumes the specialized force of ‘‘ god-images ’’ (see Jebb’s note, Soph. OT., 
p. 166). ᾿ 

Homer has by periphrasis Ἰθάκης ἕδος (ν 344) ; correspondingly Tragedy 
uses ἕδραι in an indefinite sense similar to that-of τόποι and χῶροι as δ. ρ΄. in 
Eum. 11: és τήνδε γαῖαν ἦλθε Παρνησοῦ ἕδρας and so in Soph. Aj. 460, Phil. 
1414, OC. 45. 

5 See page 71 and footnote I. 


74 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Euripides : 
To be compared are one use of the singular and three of the 
plural, the same object being referred to in each case— 
Helirars:: 
οἷσθ᾽ οὖν ὃ δρᾶσον ; μνήματος λιποῦσ᾽ ἕδραν. 
Hel. 797: 
ὁρᾷς τάφου τοῦδ᾽ ἀθλίους ἕδρας ἐμάς ; 
Similar to the latter are the plurals of verses 528 and 1178. 
Compare also Herc. Fur. 1214: 
σὲ τὸν θάσσοντα δυστήνους ἕδρας 
with Herac. 55: 
ἢ που καθῆσθαι τήνδ᾽ ἕδραν καλὴν δοκεῖς ' ; 
(4) ἕδρανα (poetical form of ἕδραι). 
Aeschylus’ Supp. 100-102 : 
(Leds) θᾶσσον ἄνω φρόνημά πως 
αὐτόθεν ἐξέπραξεν ἔμ.- 
mas ἑδράνων ἡ ἐφ᾽ ἁγνῶν. 
Sophocles’ Aj. 194 (of one seat apparently) : 
ἀλλ᾽ ἄνα ἐξ ἑδράνων. 
5. 
GATE, DOOR. 





Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 











Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
πύλαι ο 63 ο 39 5 II I 82 
θύραι 9 62 3h re ο ο 5 Ι 5 
θύρετρα ο es ae ο ο ο Ι 5 
πρόθυρα 14 9 ο ο ο οὐ ο 2 























1 Cf. also Bacch. 410 with ib. 952. 

2In Pers. 4 the plural means the palace or treasury of Xerxes (see Hesiod 
V 49). 

3 Used as θρόνοι in Soph. Ant. 1041—és Διὸς θρόνους. 

4In Ο C. 176 and 233 the plural has the vaguesense of herabouts, quarters, 
while the particular idea is indicated ib. 192f. In Tro. 538 the word refers 
to the temple of Pallas. 

5 Unless Wolf’s conjecture προθύρων be accepted for El. 109. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 75 


These words commonly refer to but one entrance. Starting 
with Homer—zvAa and θύραι have a dualistic force as the modi- 
fying adjectives show in the two passages following, M 453-456 : 

ds Ἕκτωρ ἰθὺς σανίδων φέρε λᾶαν ἀείρας 
ai ῥα πύλας εἴρυντο πύκα στιβαρῶς ἀραρυῖας, 
δικλίδας ὑψηλάς δοιοὶ δ᾽ ἔντοσθεν ὀχῆες 
εἶχον ἐπημοιβοί, μία δὲ κληὶς ἐπαρήρειν 
and p 267-8 : 
θύραι δ᾽ εὐεργέες εἰσὶν | δικλίδες. 

It is hardly safe to claim the plural in Tragedy as ἃ poetic 
plural, if we except such a clear case of license (or perhaps con- 
vention) as that of the opening to the Cyclops’ cave, which in 
fact was closed by one large door, or rather stone / In our field 
I find no trace of the singular πύλη prior to Sophocles. As for 
θύραι, it also persists strongly in the plural both in Homer and 
Tragedy, while in both θύρετρα is a plurale tantum.’ 

Accordingly the later formations πυλώματα, πρόπυλα, προνώπια, 
πρόθυρα, ἀντίθυρα, develop as. pluralia tantum in Homer.’ 

(1) πύλαι. . 

Cyc. 667-8 (of the door to the cave) : 

ἐν πύλαισι yap 
σταθεὶς φάραγγος τάσδ᾽ ἐναρμόσω χέρας. 
(2) θύραι. 





1On both words οὐ Witte (p. 21). He points out that the Skt. dvar is 
lmost plurale tantum in the RV and AV, and that d#r is plurale tantum. 
His conclusion that the singular πύλη is a development of poetic license and 
not a pure Attic form has considerable weight. He claims rightly that the 
Homeric θύραζε and the Attic θύρασι point to the plural as the original num- 
ber (Cf also Skutsch, Archiv fiir Lateinische Lexicographie und Gram- 
matik, XV, 1906, pp.45 ff.). He would find poetic excuse for the singulars 
in Ant. 1186, Aj. 11, Eur. Frag. 781, 45. But cf Aristarchus on I 473: 
“ἐ ὅτι πληθυντικῶς θύρας ἀντὶ τοῦ Ovpay’’ (Lehrs, De Aristarchi Studiis Ho- 
mericis,® p. 125 f.). 





2 Of these only ἀντίθυρα is Homeric and occurs there once—in the singular. 


* Porson attempts to read the lone singular out of Euripides (note to Or. 
1080), but Ellendt rightly upholds it (Lex. Soph., p. 683). 


76 The Poetic Plural of Greek Τὶ ragedy. 


Compare the singular of Cyc. 502, 
θύραν τίς οἴξει μοι ; 
with the plural in verse 635, 
ἡμεῖς μέν ἐσμεν μακρότερον πρὸ τῶν θυρῶν ' 
ἑστῶτες ὠθεῖν ἐς τὸν ὀφθαλμὸν τὸ πῦρ. 
(3) Ovperpa—Bacch. 448, Herc. Fur. 999, Or. 1473. 
(4) mpdOvpa*—Cho. 966; Alc. 101, Tro. 194. 
(5) mvAdpara—Sept. 408, 799; Phoen. 1113°, Hipp. 808, Hel. 
789, Ion 79. ‘ 
(6) mpomrvrda*—Soph. El. 1375, Herc. Fur. 523. 
(7) dvriévpa—Soph. El. 1433. Analogy prevails over the 
Homeric precedent. 
One other word may be added, which follows θύραι, πύλαι in 
meaning and number 3 times. 
(8) εἴσοδοι." 
Of the entrance to Phoebus’ temple is Ion 34 : 


\ θὲ Ν δὺς τὰν > ‘5 6 δὲ ΩΝ ον 
Kal ὕες προς AUTALS ELDOOOLS Ὅμὼν ἐμων. 


6. 
BED, COUCH. 


By resorting to Homer it is found that the starting point lies 
in δέμνια, which is there a plurale tantum. λέχη is found more 
often in the plural than the singular. λέκτρα which is rare there 
appears four times with singular meaning but only in the con- 
venient metrical form λέκτροισι(ν). The vacillation of λέχη is 
clearly the result of metre.’ 





' The same plural for singular (of the cave) appears ¢ 243, 304. 

2 Cf. y 493 (sing. ) with 6 20 (plur.). 

3 Cf. πύλαι, ib. 1104, 1110, 1123. 

* Cf. προπύλαια, Herod. II, 63. 

5. Homer once, singular, x 90, place of entrance. 

§ Similarly ib. 104, 1163. For different meaning, ci Eum. 30 and And. 
930 


κακῶν γυναικῶν εἴσοδοί μ᾽ ἀπώλεσαν. 


τοὶ Witte, op. cit., p. 28. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 77 





























Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles Hnvipides 

| Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 

δέμνια | ο 13 ο ο ο | 2 2 15 
λέχη | 21 27 3 2 10 | 6 67 39 
λέκτρα | 6 4 ο 3 | 4 1o | 84 
εὐναί | 62 | mt] 6.1 6 | 9,5 
κοῖται" | I o | 3(2)| 2 5 | 2/4 10 
κλισίι | 66 54 Pag | ο | I | I I 3 
εὐνατήρια hae: ο I | ο O 2b cA? I ο 
εὐνήματα | ο ο ο | ο | ο | ο | ο I 














‘A study of the uses of δέμνια and λέκτρα in Tragedy shows that 
the plural there is a convention, and that the singular can usually 
be explained on metrical grounds.’ 

(1) δέμνια. 
The two plurals in Sophocles—Trach. 901, 915—are of one 
couch. So usually those in Euripides.* 
(2) λέχη. 
Of Zeus’ couch is Prom. 895 ; and so of one couch are O T. 821, 
1243, Trach. 920 as also various uses in Euripides.° 
Noteworthy is λέχεα in El. 479—481 ch. : 
τοιῶνδ᾽ ἄνακτα δοριπόνων 
ἔκανεν ἀνδρῶν Τυνδαρί, 
σὰ λέχεα, κακόφρων κόρα, 
where λέχεα is equivalent to γυνή. 
(3) λέκτρα. 





' In this sense the plural occurs but three times. 

3 Homer has the form κοῖτος in the singular ten times. 

3 See on these words under head of ‘‘Metre.’’ Also cf Witte, op. cit., 
pp. 208 f. and pp. 221 f. 

* E.g. Alc. 186, 1062, Cyc. 999, Hipp. 180, Or. 35, 44, 88. 

5 E.g. Alc. 175, Med. 180, Or. 313. 

5 Cf. similar use of νυμφεῖα Ant. 568 and of γάμοι ib. Trach. 1139, Med. 18. 


78 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Of one bed are, for example, Pers. 704, OC. 527, Ant. 862, 
Phil. 699, OT. 260; and so very often in Euripides. 
(4) εὐναί. 
Agam. I192-93: 
ἐν μέρει δ᾽ ἀπέπτυσαν 
εὐνὰς ἀδελφοῦ τῷ πατοῦντι δυσμενεῖς. 
Cho. 318: 
ἔνθα σ᾽ ἔχουσιν εὐναί." : 
Sophocles does not have the plural in the mere literal sense of 
cubile,* but Euripides has the plural of one bed several times.’ 
(5) κοΐται. 
Of one couch are Trach. 921-22: 
ὡς ἔμ᾽ οὔποτε 
δέξεσθ᾽ ἔτ᾽ ἐν κοίταισι ταῖσδ᾽ εὐνάτριαν, 
and Soph. El. 194, ἐν κοίταις πατρῴαις. 
(6) κλισίαι (See pages 60-61). 
(7) εὐνατήρια. 
Trach. 918: 
καθέζετ᾽ ἐν μέσοισιν edvarnpiots.” 
(8) εὐνήματα. 
Occurs in Tragedy only in Ion 304: 
ἄπαιδές ἐσμεν χρόνι᾽ ἔχοντ᾽ εὐνήματα. 
fe 
ALTAR, FOUNDATION, CAPITAL. 
There is no indication of the plural for one altar in Homer. 
In 441° the plural is of the chariot platform, the steps— 
ἀνάβαθρα---οἵ the palace. Where the plural is used of one altar 
in Tragedy, it probably suggests the nature of the structure.’ 





1 Of. Soph. El. 436: εἰς εὐνὴν πατρός. 

2Cf. Ellendt, Lex. Soph. 

3 Fg. Rhes. 1, 88, 581, 606, 631, 660 (the bed of Hector). 
«(ἡ Alc. 249. 


5 Cf. the lone instance of the word in Euripides—Or. 590: 
μένει δ᾽ ἐν οἴκοις ὑγιὲς εὐνατήριον. 


δ ἅρματα δ᾽ ἂμ βωμοῖσι τίθει, κατὰ Nira πετάσσας (see Leaf, Vol. I, p. 361). 


7 βωμός = βάσις (step). When {πε ἐσχάρα was away there were several 
steps in the ascent (Volp, op. cit., p. 52). 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Τὶ ragedy. 79 


Homer provides no precedent for the poetic plurals ἐσχάραι, 
κρηπίδες, érixpava which apparently stand under the influence of 


βωμοί. 



































Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 
Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
βωμοί 15 5} | 16 125 3 8 | 48 26 
ἐσχάραι 7 τ᾽ 2 τ 7 Aas Yee Re Rae Το 7 
κρηπίδες ο Sat a ο mye ess 4 5 
| | 
ἐπίκρανα oo} Τὸ | a [VOU Ὁ I I 
(1) βωμοί. 


Soph.’ Ant. 1016: 
βωμοὶ yap ἡμῖν ἐσχάραι τε παντελεῖς. 
Ant. 1005-06 could hardly refer to more than one altar : 
εὐθὺς δὲ δείσας ἐμπύρων ἐγευόμην 
βωμοῖσι παμφλεκτοῖσιν. 
OC. 897-8 seems to mean merely the one altar of Ῥοβείάοῃ, ἡ 
inasmuch as no other god is mentioned : 
οὔκουν τις ὧΞ τάχιστα προσπόλων μολὼν 
πρὸς τούσδε βωμούς κτέ. 
It is more natural to assume but one altar in Trach. 904-05 : 
βρυχᾶτο μὲν βωμοῖσι προσπιπτοῦσ᾽ ὅτι 
γένοιντ᾽ ἔρημοι. 
Eur. El. 803-04 (of one altar) : 
λαβὼν δὲ προχύτας μητρὸς εὐνέτης σέθεν 
ἔβαλλε βωμούς," τοιάδ᾽ ἐννέπων ἔπη. 
(2) ἐσχάραι. 





! True plurals. 

2Sing. OC. 888, 1158, Frag. 341; plur.. Ant. 1006, 1016, OT. 16, OC. 
-898, Trach. 238, 754, 994, 993. — 

3 But this is not surely of one altar (see Volp, however, op. cit., p. 53.) 

4 Mentioned in the singular ib. 1158. 

5So alsoI T. 405. Cf the singular in El. 792, IT. 72, 705. 


80 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tr ragedy. 


Eur. Supp. 290: 
σεμναῖσι Δηοῦς ἐσχάραις ' παρημένη. 
And. 1102: 
λαβόντες ἦμεν ἐσχάραις " τ᾽ ἐφέσταμεν. 
Phoen. 284: 
μαντεῖα σεμνὰ Λοξίου τ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἐσχάρας ὃ 
(3) κρηπῖδες. 
IT.996-97 (of the stone pedestal bereft of image) : 
ἡνίκ᾽ ἂν κενὰς 
κρηπῖδας εὕρῃ λαΐνας ἀγάλματος. 
Ion 38-39: 
ἤνεγκα καὶ τὸν παῖδα κρηπίδων * ἔπι 
τίθημι ναοῦ τοῦδε. 
Also verse 510: 
πρόσπολοι γυναῖκες, at τῶνδ᾽ ἀμφὶ κρηπίδας " δόμων. 
(4) ἐπίκρανα. 
IT. 50-52 (of the capital of the pillar): 
μόνος δ᾽ ἐλείφθη στῦλος; ὡς ἔδοξέ μοι 
δόμων πατρῴων, ἐκ δ᾽ ἐπικράνων “ κόμας 
ξανθὰς καθεῖναι. 


ὃ. 
TOMB,’ CASKET. 


Words of this class are appended here not as logically having 
place, perhaps, but for convenience of classification. 

(1) τάφοι. 

1 Cf. ἐσχάραν, ib. 1200. 

2 Cf. ἐσχάραν, ib. 1138. 

5 Of. ἐσχάραν, Herac. 121. 

4 Cf. κρηπὶς βωμῶν, Trach. 993, and καῶν κρηπίς, Pers. 815. 

5 Of. ἀνακτόρων κρηπῖδος, And. 1111 f. 

6 Cf. the other use of the word (singular), Hipp. 201. 

7 χύμβος is of frequent occurrence both in Homer and Tragedy but it en- 
tirely resists the poetic plural. 

® Occurs Homer sing. 9 (sepultura) ; Aesch. sing. 16, plur. 2. (Sept. 914- 
true plural, and Eum. 767) ; Soph. sing. 33, plur. 5 (all poetic plurals). Eu- 
ripides has both numbers often, but the plural never occurs in sense of 
tomb. 














The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 81 


Volp says: ‘‘Nam cum τάφος sepulturam significet, de sepulcro 
“legitur τάφοι." Thisis misleading, for the singularis frequently 
used in the meaning of tomb, while the plural is rare in any sense. 

Campbell concludes that ‘‘ The use of the plural may perhaps 
point to the various ceremonials of burial, or to the number of 
tombsin the place where Polybus was gathered to his forefathers.’’ 
That the latter notion is present is suggested by certain passages 
in Herodotus *; that the former can hardly be, may be seen in 
OT. 942 and other places where the deceased is represented as 
already ἐν τάφοις ; that all five uses of the plural in Sophocles are 
poetic, and can be explained on metrical grounds is shown on 
another page—in the section on Metre. 

Eum. 767: 

αὐτοὶ yap ἡμεῖς ὄντες ἐν τάφοις τότε. 

Here ἡμεῖς might be regarded as including both Orestes and 
his contemporaries. The very fact that τάφος occurs in the 
plural without any constraint of metre assures this—for elsewhere 
in Tragedy the plural has an explanation on that ground. 
And yet if ἡμεῖς is a Pluralis Maiestatis,’ τάφος may be plural by 
attraction. 

OT. 942°: 

οὐ δῆτ᾽ ἐπεί νιν θάνατος ἐν τάφοις ἔχει. 
(2) ταφαί." 
Of one person are Aj. 1089-90 : 
καί σοι προφωνῶ τόνδε μὴ θάπτειν ὅμως 
μὴ τόνδε θάπτων αὐτὸς εἰς ταφὰς πέσῃς. 
Same drama, verses 1109-10: 


eis ταφὰς | ἐγὼ θήσω δικαίως. 








lop. cit., p. 58. 

*IV, 127: πατρώιοι τάφοι ; and II, 169: ἐν τῇσι πατρωΐίῃσι ταφῇσι. 

580 taken, the pronoun emphasizes his supernatural power beyond the 
grave, whence he is to cooperate with Pallas in inflicting calamity. See s. v., 
chapter II. 

* For other citations see 5. v. in section on Metre. 

5Occurs Aesch. sing. 1 (Sept. 818); Soph. sing. 3, plur. 2 (Ajax 1090, 
1109) ; Eur. plur. 2 (Supp. 376, Hel. 1063). 


82 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Hel. 1063-4 : 
εἰ χέρσῳ ταφὰς */ θεῖναι κελεύει σε KTE. 

In the citations from Herodotus (page 81, note 2) the plural 
certainly means one tomb and equals τάφοις. Jebb, however, 
thinks the word ‘‘ has its ordinary sense ‘rites of sepulture’ ’’ 
in Ajax 1090. The meaning of grave seems surely more natural 
in the three instances above, and furthermore only the plural is 
found where such a meaning seems apparent. 

(3) κέδροι" is used poetically of a cedar-casket in Alc. 365-6: 

ἐν ταῖσι αὐταῖς γάρ p ἐπισκήψω κέδροις 

σοὶ τούσδε θεῖναι. 
The plural carries with it a sense of vagueness just as περιβόλων 
in Tro. 1141, where κέδρου appears in sense of casket : 


ἀλλ᾽ ἀντὶ κέδρου περιβόλων τε λαΐνων. 





' For this, at least, the notion of place where many are buried is not 
present. 


?Occurs Eur. sing. 3, plur. 1. 


CHAPTER I. 





PART TWO. 





ABSTRACT NOUNS. 





Ὡς 
MURDER, DEATH. 


Of the words following only six occur in Homer : ¢ovai,' φόνοι, 
θάνατοι, aipara,” μόροι, πληγαί. Of these only φοναί, φόνοι, πληγαί and 
θάνατοι are found in the plural there. φόνοι is a plurale tan- 
tum both there and elsewhere. The lone plural of θάνατοι has a 
particular meaning,* while that of φόνοι“ too is probably a true 
plural. 

The primary impulse arising in Homer—in ¢ova/, apparently— 
effects marked traces in Tragedy, where the poetic usage is seen 
not only in Homeric words but also in later formations as the 
tables under this head show. 























(a) Murder. 
4 | Homer Aeschylus Sophocles | Euripides 
Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
φοναί | ὦ | 2 ee ο | 3 ο 2 
φόνοι 45 | I 3: | eee) Fag | 6 165 6 
σφαγαί ο | Sh -(3}} ‘S(6)) 2 ee oe ee eae 
πληγαί 3 | fet Cae Weegee ee ἀκ a Χά 
σφάγια o | o ο 3 ο Ι 10 20 
πλήγματα ΣΝ πὰ Or te tage re, abe 2 
σφαγιασμοί o | o ο oO o | 0 ο Ι 
διαφθοραί ο | ο I ο Ι | 2 ihn ἊΣ 
προσφάγματα ο ὩΣ ΤΊ γ. ο ο | ο | 3 3(4) 




















Limited to the dative plural with prepositions ἀμφί and ἐν. 
?For the uses of αἵματα in this sense, see pages 14-15. 


ὅμ 31: πάντες μὲν στυγεροὶ θάνατοι δειλοῖσι βροτοῖσι (1, 6. all kinds of 
deaths). 
*) 612. 


΄ 


"84 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


(1) oval.’ 

The force is singular in Agam. 447: 

τὸν δ᾽ ἐν φοναῖς καλῶς πεσόντα. 

Similarly the reference is to but one person in Ant. 696, 1314 ; 
Eur. El. 1207.’ 

(2) φόνοι. 

In Eum. 843-845 the plural is a true one, since the tribunal is 
permanent: _ 

ἐπεὶ δὲ πράγμα δεῦρ᾽ ἐπέσκηψεν τόδε 
φόνων δικαστὰς ὁρκίους ἡ αἱρουμένη 
θεσμὸν τὸν εἰς ἅπαντ᾽ ἐγὼ θήσω χρόνον. 

Sophocles : 

Means murder or blood in the singular, but murder in the plural. 

OC. 962-4 (Oedipus to Creon): 

ὅστις φόνους μοι Kal γάμους Kal συμφορὰς 
τοῦ σοῦ διῆκας στόματος, ἃς ἐγὼ τάλας 
ἤνεγκον ἄκων. 

The context shows that φόνουβ refers merely to one murder— 
that of Laius by Oedipus ; otherwise it might include the attend- 
ants. ‘The three plurals of the passage are highly rhetorical and 
seem to magnify the enormity of Creon’s charge. 

Same play, verses 989-90 : 

ovs aiev* ἐμφέρεις σύ μοι 
φόνους πατρῴους ἐξονειδίζων πικρῶς. 
Similarly in Soph. El. 779 Agamemnon is referred to in the 


expression φόνους πατρῴους. 





1 As to K 733 where the slaughter of a heifer is mentioned the Scholiast 
explains: “τῷ φόνῳ ἢ τῷ τόπῳ ἔνθα repbvevrac’’—surely the former ! 

? The other uses in Tragedy are Ant. 1003. Hel. 154. 

3 ὁρκίους aipousévn—Casaubon. 

* Volp’s idea that φόνοι may have been used by reason of the influence of 
aiév'seems fanciful : αἰέν nowhere else appears as a plural companion of 
φόνος ! 


a 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 85 


Soph. El. 11-13: 
ὅθεν σε πατρὸς ἐκ φόνων ἐγώ ποτε 
πρὸς σῆς ὁμαίμου καὶ κασιγνήτης λαβὼν 
ἤνεγκα (1.6. Agamemnon). 
Trach. 557-58 : 
ὃ (δῶρον) παῖς ἔτ᾽ οὖσα τοῦ δασυστέρνου παρὰ 
Νέσσου φθίνοντος ἐκ φόνων ᾿ ἀνειλόμην. 

Ion 1026 (of Ion alone) : 
αὐτοῦ νυν αὐτὸν κτεῖν᾽, iv’ ἀρνήσει φόνους. 

As for Sophocles two uses of the plural from his latest’? play 
would easily allow a substitution of the singular—so far as metre 
is concerned ; but in them the plural seems to avoid specific 
reference,—the notion of murder is generalized. 

In the passage above quoted from Euripides—it is the only 
poetic plural there—the meaning is approximately : A7// him 
here, and then thou canst deny guilt of murdering anybody. 


(3). σφαγαί. 
Agam. 1599: 


ἀμπίπτει δ᾽ ἀπὸ σφαγὰς ἐρῶν, where more than one are 


thought of. 

1 For ων here Bergk touted ace ponte ind so » Dindorff emends ‘has 
of Electra τὶ. Jebb in his note to the former accepts the change: ‘‘ φονῶν, 
Bergk’s correction of φόνων seems right’’ on the ground that ‘‘ here we ex- 
pect a word which will directly suggest the wounds.’’ Against any changes 
the following reasons seem conclusive: (1) The mss. authority ; (2) There 
is no precedent for the genitive of ¢ovai—it occurs in the dative only and 
ina prepositional phrase always; (3) φόνων does suggest a wound, often 
meaning 6b/ood as e.g. in Q 610: of μὲν dp’ ἐννῆμαρ κέατ᾽ ἐν φόνῳ and Aesch. 
Eum. 184, θρόμβους φόνου, Eur. Hec. 241, σταλαγμοὶ φόνου which equals 
σταλαγμοὺς αἵματος in Eur. Ion 1003; cf also the adjectives φόνιος, φοίνιος 
(bloody); (4) The scholiast has φόνων in the lemma ; (5) 7 The uses of od vocin 
Tragedy show that emendation is unnecessary. 

2 See Christ, Griechische Litteraturgeschichte, Miiller’s Handbuch der 
Klassischen Altertumswissenschaft, Vol. VII, p. 173. 

’The reading of the codd.—c¢ayfs—can hardly stand. Voss, Wilamowitz, 
and Witte write σφαγάς, others σφαγήν. The former is far more probable, 
whether the plural should be considered as suggesting the /wo children 


86 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Same play, verse 1057 : 
ἕστηκεν ἤδη μῆλα πρὸς σφαγὰς πυρός 
and verse 1096 : 
κλαιομένα τάδε βρέφη σφαγάς, where the influence of μῆλα 
and βρέφη, respectively, suggests itself. 
In 187 the statement is general : 
ὀφθαλμωρύχοι δίκαι σφαγαί τε. 
Prom. 863: 
δίθηκτον ἐν σφαγαῖσι βάψασα ξίφος, 
where σφαγαῖσι is a bold enallage for αἵμασι (which is often 
similarly used in the plural) and is simply proleptic. There is 
not sufficient warrant for tbe meaning usually given—/thvoat.' 
As often the word means gash, wound, in this particular case 
having especial reference to the blood. 
Eum, 450-1: 
ἐστ᾽ ἂν πρὸς ἀνδρὸς αἵματος καθαρσίου 
σφαγαὶ καθαιμάξωσι νεοθήλου βοτοῦ. 
The plural is of one animal and clearly equals αἵματα " in force. 
Sophocles has the one singular with the five plurals— 
Ajax 915-918 : 
καλύψω. 
φυσῶντ᾽ ἄνω πρὸς ῥῖνας ἔκ τε φοινίας 
πληγῆς μελανθὲν αἷμ᾽ ἀπ᾽ οἰκείας σφαγῆς 
(1.6. the wound). 





or as suggesting dits of flesh (cf. Neue’s Formenlehre on Carnes). 
Aeschylean usage favors the plural as suggesting the former idea; and a 
kindred use to the latter meaning is found in Aesch. Prom. 863. See 
also verse 1389, κἀκφυσιῶν ὀξεῖαν αἵματος σφαγήν where some editors strangely 
read αἱματοσφαγής : σφαγήν is a gash or wound and αἵματος σφαγήν is simply 
a bold enallage for αἷμα ἀπὸ τῆς σφαγῆς, as Bloomfield notes. 

'The array of authority for this meaning includes Bloomfield, Ruhnken, 
Paley, Sidgwick, Kummerer, Dindorf (Lex. Aesch.), Steph. Thes., Liddell 
and Scott. The following passages are summoned for support : κοινὸν δὲ 
μέρος αὐχένος καὶ στήθους σφαγή (Arist. Hist. An.,I, 14), and τὸ ξίφος καθεῖσα διὰ 
τῆς σφαγῆς (Polyaen. VIII, 48). Butotheruses οὗ the word in Tragedy as well 
as the nature of the participle βάψασα make a strong presumption for the 
view here taken. Οὐ Wecklein’s note, “" σφαγαὶ κεῖται περὶ τοῦ αἵματος τοῦ 
govevdév tos” (Vol. (II. p. 206) and also that of J. E. Harry, “ἐν φόνῳ, not 
in iugulo’’ (p. 279). See Eur. Or. 291 for a similar use of σφαγαί (quoted 
p. 87). 

2See on αἵματα, pp. 14-15. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 87 


Bl. 37: 
δόλοισι κλέψαι χειρὸς ἐνδίκους σφαγάς 
(of both Aegisthus and Clytemnestra). 
Electra 568 : 
© ov κατὰ σφαγὰς 
ἐκκομπάσας ἔπος τι τυγχάνει βαλών 
(alluding to one fawn). 
Trach. 571-5733 
ἐὰν yap ἀμφίθρεπτον αἷμα τῶν ἐμῶν 
σφαγῶν ἐνέγκῃ χερσίν, ἣ μελαγχόλους 
ἔβαψεν ἰοὺς θρέμμα Λερναίας ὕδρας κτέ, 

(σφαγῶν being the wound inflicted by the one arrow’); 
similarly σφαγῶν verse 717, but in verse 756 the plural is of 
several victims : 

πολυθύτους τεύχειν σφαγάς. 
Euripides’ : 
Instances of the plural referring to one person are Rhes. 605-6: 
τὰς δ᾽ Exropos 
εὐνὰς ἔασον καὶ καρατόμους σφαγάς (murder, or death-blows*), 
El. 122η-8: 
᾿ς λαβοῦ, κάλυπτε μέλεα ματέρος πέπλοις 
καὶ καθάρμοσον σφαγάς (wound, gash), 
Or. 291-2: 
μήποτε τεκούσης εἰς σφαγὰς * 
ὦσαι ξίφος. 
(4) πληγαί. 
Just as σφαγαί, πληγαί assumes the force of wound, the plural 
being poetic, as for example in Eum. 103°: 





1See on lol, p. 70. 


2 Aside from the three cases cited, the plural refers 17 times to the murder 
of one person : And. 399, El. 1069, 1243, Hec. 522, Hel. 778, 848, IA. 906, 
1318, 1548, Ion 1250, Or. 39, Phoen. 945, Rhes. 606, 636, Tro. 1315, Fr. 781- 


69, 70. Other cases of the plural are Phoen. 1431, Supp. 765 Tro. 562, Hel. 
142, 301, Ion 377, 616. 


3 Cf. θάνατοι, pp. go f. 
4 Used as in Prom. 863 (quoted p. 86). 
5 Scholiast: τραγικώτερον τὸ εἴδωλον Κλυταιμνήστρας σῴζει τὴν σφαγήν. 


88 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


ὅρα δὲ πληγὰς ᾿ τάσδε καρδίᾳ σέθεν, 
and Ion 282: 
πληγαὶ τριαίνης ποντίου σφ᾽ ἀπώλεσαν. 

(5) σφάγια. 

The poetic plural appears only in Euripides. In Hecuba the 
singular occurs three times’ of the victim (Polyxena), but the 
plural alludes to merely the one victim in verses 133-135 : 

Λαερτιάδης πείθει στρατιὰν 
μὴ τὸν ἄριστον Δαναῶν πάντων 
. δούλων σφαγίων εἵνεκ᾽ ἀπωθεῖν. 

Or. 658 (of Iphigenia) : 

ἁ δ᾽ Αὐλὶς ἔλαβε σφάγι᾽ ἐμῆς ὅὁμοσπορου. 

Or. 1284-5 (of Helen) : 

τί μέλλεθ᾽ οἱ κατ᾽ οἶκον ἐν ἡσυχίᾳ 
σφάγια φοινίσσειν ; 

In certain cases, as for example Orestes 815 and Eur. El. 1294, 
the plural equals σφαγαί, φόνοι or θάνατοι. In other instances the 
plural refers to more than one or merely generalizes. 

(6) πλήγματα. 

In Ant. 1283 there is probably but one wound in mind ὃ: 

γυνὴ τέθνηκε, τοῦδε παμμήτωρ νεκροῦ, 
δύστηνος, ἄρτι νεοτόμοισι πλήγμασιν. 
(7) σφαγιασμοί. 
Eur. El. 200 (of the murder of Agamemnon) : 
οὐ παλαιῶν πατρὸς σφαγιασμοί. 
(8) διαφθοραί. 
OT. 572-3: 
οὑθούνεκ᾽, εἰ μὴ σοὶ ξυνῆλθε, τάσδ᾽ ἐμὰς 
οὐκ ἄν ποτ᾽ εἶπε Λαΐου διαφθοράς (of Laius only and equals 
φῦνους). 
Sophocles OC. 551-2: 
πολλῶν ἀκούων ἔν TE τῷ πάρος χρόνῳ 
τὰς αἱματηρὰς ὀμμάτων διαφθοράς (being here under the in- 
fluence of ὀμμάτων). A parallel to this is to be seen in Kuripides* : 








1Cf. the sing. of Aj. 919: dm’ οἰκείας πληγῆς. 

2Vs. 109, 119, 305. Witte would justify the singulars here and elsewhere 
as being metri gratia. 

3So Kummerer, op. cit. 

4In Hipp. 682 the variant reading διαφθορεῦ is preferable. 


—————— 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. ὦ 89. 


Phoen. 870: 
αἵ Paipatrwrot δεργμάτων διαφθοραὶ 
θεῶν σόφισμα κἀπίδειξις Ἑλλάδι. 
(9) προσφάγματα. 
Compare the two following citations from Euripides,’ both 
plural and singular being used of the same victim— 
Hec, 41-42: 
αἰτεῖ δ᾽ ἀδελφὴν τὴν ἐμὴν Πολυξένην 
τύμβῳ φιλον πρόσφαγμα καὶ γέρας λαβεῖν - 
Hec. 265 : 
Ἑλένην νιν αἰτεῖν χρῆν τάφῳ προσφάγματα. 
So too the plural is of one victim in Tro. 628 and Eur. ΕἸ. 
1174. 
In Alc. 844-45 the plural is used of the blood of one victim : 
καΐ νιν (θάνατον) εὑρήσειν δοκῷ 
πίνοντα τύμβου πλησίον προσφαγμάτων. 
But the singular is collective and means two victims in IT. 458, 
and also in verses 241-244 : 
ἥκουσιν εἰς γῆν κυανέαν Συμπληγάδα 
πλάτῃ φυγόντες δίπτυχοι νεανίαι 


θεᾷ φίλον πρόσφαγμα καὶ θυτήριον 























᾿Αρτέμιδι. 
(b) Death. 
Homer Aeschylus Sophocles | Euripides 
| Sing.  Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
ctet aes | 

θάνατοι | 136 Tit 26 5 18 4 92 6 
θύματα | ο ο I I ο 8 | 10 Io 
μόροι | 14 ο 45 1 | 20 12 22 ο 
φθοραί | ο Ὁ, ΔΉ ae ο ο Ι 
δυσμαί | ο a ee ee 2 Wee ee ο 
κατασκαφαΐί | ο ο Oost I | Loa pede 3 











1Jn El. 1174 the mss. have προσφθεγμάτων, but Musgrave and Nauck do 
well to read προσφαγμάτων. 


go The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


(1) θάνατοι. 

Aeschylus’ Agam. 1337-39 ch. : 
viv δ᾽ εἰ προτέρων αἷμ᾽ ἀποτίσει 
καὶ τοῖσι θανοῦσι ἄλλων 
ποινὰς θανάτων ἐπικραίνει. 

Cho. 50-53 ch. : 
ἰὼ κατασκαφαὶ δόμων 
ἀνήλιοι βροτοστυγεῖς 
δνόφοι καλύπτουσι δόμους 
δεσποτῶν θανάτοισι. 

The piling up of the plurals in these choral passages promotes 
dignity and elevation of style. θανάτων, θανάτοισι" and δεσποτῶν 
all refer to Agamemnon, while τοῖς θανοῦσι alludes to Iphigenia. 

Sophocles : 

The death of many is meant in OC. 1200, but El. 203-06 can 
mean only that of Agamemnon : 

ὦ νύξ, ὦ δείπνων ἀρρήτων 
ἔκπαγλ᾽ ἄχθη: 

τοῖς ἐμὸς ἴδε πατὴρ 

θανάτους αἰκεῖς διδύμαιν χειροῖν. 

Trach. 1275-76 (of Deianira’s death) : 
λείπου μηδὲ σύ, παρθέν᾽ ἐπ᾽ οἴκων 
μεγάλους μὲν ἰδοῦσα νέους θανάτους. 

OT. 491-3: 

πρὸς ὅτου δὴ βασάνῳ 
ἐπὶ τὰν ἐπίδαμον φάτιν εἶμ᾽ Οἰδιπόδα Λαβδακίδαις 
ἐπίκουρος ἀδήλων θανάτων ὅ. 

Euripides* has the plural for the singular in only two places— 

El. 482-5 : 





‘In three instances more than one person is referred to. For a similar 
usage in Plato, see page 6. See Sept. 877, 894, Agam. 1573. 

So Volp, and Jebb (note to Soph. El. citing Cho. 53), but Witte 
wrongly: ‘‘ Der Plural anstatt des Singulars ist zuerst bei Sophokles El. 204 
belegt ’’ (p. 254). 

3 Cf. αἱμάτων ἐπίκουρος, Kur. El. 188. 

* The plural occurs Or. 1641, Med. 197, Alc. 886, Herc. Fur. 629, El. 484, 
Frag. 964, 4. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. gt 


τοιγάρ σέ TOT οὐρανίδαι 
πέμψουσιν θανάτοῖϊῖς ᾿ ἦ μὰν 
ἔτ᾽ ἔτι φόνιον ὑπὸ δέραν 
ὄψομαι αἷμα χυθὲν σιδάρῳ, 
and Frag. 964, 4: 
φυγάς τ᾽ ἐμαυτῶ προτιθεὶς πάτρας 
ἐμῆς θανάτους " τ᾿ ἀώρους. 

The following facts appear : (1) The poetic plural is usually 
in choral passages—the place where one sees the tendency toward 
elevation in style, toward generalizing, and avoiding the spe- 
cific’; (2) The plural for the singular is an extension, no doubt, 
of the plural use where more than one person is referred to; (3) 
Another influence at work is that of analogy‘; (4) The metre 
is in some instances particularly favorable to the plural. 

Seidler’ observes that the plural is used especially of a violent 
death. Peile has expressed the same view for αἵματα But it is 
extremely doubtful whether in any of the words of this nature 
the notion of violence is a common result of plurality’. Then, 
too, the singular prevails in Tragedy in the ratio of eight to 
one *, and whatever the number a death in Tragedy is usually 
violent ! 

In Soph. El. 206, θανάτους may have the force of death-blows, 
closely approaching πληγαί, σφαγάς as e.g. in καρατόμους σφαγάς ὃ. 
Kaibel ® considers ἡ ρώδνων a plural oF attraction of sree ; his ob- 


απ ξ. Ciptemncekn gine 

? Probably influenced by φυγάς. 

5 E.g. in OT. 493 (quoted p. 90) ἀδήλων intensifies a vagueness already 
residing in the plural θανάτων. 

*Volp (p. 72) thinks the plural is analogical to δυσμαί, citing Aesch. 
Frag. 67—é€mi δυομαῖσι τεοῦ πατρός. But this rare and highly imaginative use 
of δυσμαί can hardly be so connected with θάνατοι. It is best to associate . 
θάνατοι with more common words whose meaning is not transferred. 

5In note to Eur. El. 483 (cited by Ellendt). 

® See discussion (pp. 14-15) on this point. 

τῷ Kummerer (op. cit., p. 21). 

8. Note e.g. the singular—of a violent death—in OC. 1425. 

® Rhes. 606. 

 Sophokles Elektra, p. 103. 


92 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


jection to the meaning of death-blows, however, is groundless as 
B 264, ὃ 244 show'. 
(2) θύματα. 
Agam. 1117-18 has the singular : 
στάσις δ᾽ ἀκόρετος γένει 
κατολολυξάτω θύματος λευσίμου, 
to which may be compared the plural of verse 1310 (not neces- 


sarily of one, however) : 
‘ 
καὶ πῶς ; τόδ᾽ ὄζει θυμάτων ἐφεστίων. 


In Sophocles the word is plurale tantum’, while the singular 
and plural occur with about equal frequency in Euripides. 
Just as θύματος means θάνατον in Agamemnon 1118 (above), so 
also the plural is (like θάνατοι) used of one person in Soph. EI. 
573: 
ὧδ᾽ ἦν τὰ κείνης θύματ(α), 
and in IA. 1484-6: 
ὡς ἐμοῖσιν εἰ χρεών 
αἵμασι θύμασίν τε 
θέσφατ᾽ ἐξαλείψω. 
In each case the plural is of Iphigenia only. Elsewhere the 
plural can refer to more than one object. 
(3) μόροι. | 
On the analogy of θάνατοι, μόροι appears once in Tragedy of one 
death—Sophocles Ant. 1312-13: 
ὡς αἰτίαν ye τῶνδε κἀκείνων ἔχων 
πρὸς τῆς θανούσης τῆσδ᾽ ἐπεσκήπτου μόρων 
We should expect τοῦδε δὲ κἀκείνου μόρου instead of ἁ τῶνδε μόρων 
(of Haemon) and ἐκείνων μόρων (of Megareus). : 
If it be said that the fact of having two persons in mind ex- 
plains the plural, yet none the less the singular would be ex- 
pected in prose. Note that κἀκείνου would produce hiatus. 





1B 264: πεπληγὼς ἀεικέσσιν πληγῇσιν---Ὀτι Kaibel says, ‘‘ Todesschlage. . 
nicht αἰκεῖς heissen koOnnten. 


2 Phil. 8, OT. 239, OC. 899, Trach. 287, 995, El. 573) 634, Ant. 1007. 
See αἵματα, p. 15. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 93 


(4) φθοραί. 
Agam. 406: 
ἄγουσά τ᾽ ἀντίφερνον Ἰλίῳ φθοράν, 
.with which compare the plural in verse 814: 
κλύοντες ἀνδροθνῆτας ᾿Ιλίου φθοράς, 
where the adjective ἀνδροθνῆτας is distributive and projects its 
plural notion into the nowfu. 
Compare Eur. Frag. 813, 2: 
πόνοι δὲ κἂν σοὶ καὶ φθόραι πολλαὶ βίου 
ἔνεισιν. 

(5) δυσμαί is commonly found in the plural both in prose and 
poetry. By a striking transfer of meaning it once equals θάνατοι---- 
Aesch. Frag. 69 : 

ἐπὶ δυσμαῖσι᾽ τεοῦ πατρός. 
(6) κατασκαφαί. 
Sept. 46: 
πόλει κατασκαφὰς θέντες (the plural suggesting manifold 
deeds of destruction). In Cho. 50 the plural is highly poetic *: 
ἰὼ κατασκαφαὶ δόμων. ᾿ 
Euripides : 
Compare Hel. 196, 
Ἰλώυ κατασκαφάν 
with stich uses of the plural as appear in the Phoen. 1196, 
πύργων κατασκαφάς 
and in IA. 92, 1379, 
κατασκαφαὶ Φρυγῶν. 
The force of attraction is obvious. 


2- 
POWER, DOMINION, AUTHORITY. 


A comparison of ἀρχαί, κράτη, θρόνοι and σκῆπτρα shows a fre- 
quent coincidence in meaning. The plural of θρόνοι and σκῆπτρα 





1 See p. 91, footnote 5. 

* The literal meaning is found in Sept. 1008, 1037; and Ant. goo (where 
κατασκαφάς is to be read). 

*See p. 90 on this passage. 


94 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


is the regular form in Tragedy when their meaning is extended 
to include that of ἄρχαι, κράτη". 

(1) ἀρχαί is included here only in so far as it has the meaning 
above-mentioned—vegal powers, and the figures given are so 
limited.’ 

Aeschylus* Cho. 864-5 : 

ἀρχάς τε πολισσονόμους 
πατέρων θ᾽ ἕξει μέγαν ὄλβον, 
the plural being distributive of the functions of the kingly office 
(or possibly suggesting the reign of the former usurpers). 
There are also certain uses of this word which have a concrete 
force as in Agam. 123-125: 
κεδνὸς δὲ στρατόμαντις ἰδὼν δύο λήμασιν ἴσους 
᾿Ατρεΐδας μαχίμους ἐδάη λαγοδαίτας 
πομπούς T apxas,—where ἀρχάς is simply dzrds*. 
Sophocles® Ant. 177 : 
ἀρχαῖς τε (governmental affairs) καὶ νόμοισιν ἐντριβὴς φανῇ. 
Same play verse 744: 
ἁμαρτάνω yap Tas ἐμὰς ἀρχὰς σέβων, 
my royal prerogatives. 
Verses 796-7 : 
τῶν μεγάλων πάρεδρος ἐν ἀρχαῖς 
θέσμων, 
with which compare OC. 1267: 
Ζηνὶ σύνθακος θρόνων Aidds, 
and same play 1382: 
Δίκη Etvedpos Ζηνὸς ἀρχαίοις νόμοις. 





1 See pp. 37-39 and pp. 67-72. 

? Homer has only the singular (11 times) aud in the earlier meaning. 

* Occurs sing. g9—Prom 166, 231, 757 ; Sept. 196, Cho. 960, Supp. 485, 595 
(Schiitz dpxas), 700, Frag. 23; plur. 2-Cho. 864, Agam. 124. 

‘Cf. Sidgwick in note 5. ν. The plural has the concrete sense of rulers 
in Eur. And. 1097 : 

ἀρχαί τ᾽ ἐπληροῦντ᾽ εἴς τε βουλευτήρια, 

Phoen. 973: λέξει γὰρ ἀρχαῖς καὶ στρατηλάταις τάδε and also Ion 1Π1Ὶ. 

> Occurs sing. 8- OT. 49, 383, 593, 737, 905, OC. 374, 451, Aj. 1104 ; plur. 4. 

6 Cf. Ant. 165-6: τὰ Λαΐου oéBovras . . .. κράτη. 


ee τ ee 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 95 


OT. 259: 
ἔχων μὲν ἀρχὰς as ἐκεῖνος εἶχε πρίν, 
where ἄρχας equals κράτη. 
Euripides’ And. 699-700 : 
σεμνοὶ δ᾽ ἐν ἀρχαῖς ἥμενοι κατὰ πτόλιν 
φρονοῦσι δήμου μεῖζον, ὄντες οὐδένες, 
where ἀρχαῖς approaches θρόνοι (compare ἐν θρόνοις ἥμενοι “ἢ just 
as the latter often approaches the abstract notion of ἀρχαί. 

(2) κράτη is always singular in Homer (30 times), but ‘the 
plural is frequent in Tragedy, ‘The uses in Tragedy are defined 
by Kummerer* as follows : 

(a) Kraftige gewaltsame Handlungen. 
(b) Vorrang, Oberhand, Sieg. 
(c) Herrschaft, Regierung. 

He should have added a fourth class where the meaning is 
concrete (just as sometimes dpyxai)—7z.e, the word is used of the 
person who exercises authority. In this sense, however, the 
word appears only in Aeschylus and is singular in each case‘. 

The third class marks the uses to be noted ποιοῦ. In this 
sense Aeschylus has the plural® in Pers. 785 : 

ἅπαντες ἡμεῖς, οἱ κράτη τάδ᾽ ἔσχομεν, 
where the plural subject suggests attraction. 

In Sophocles the word in this meaning is practically plurale 
tantum,' though the singular does appearin such an expression as 
πᾶν κράτος * ‘Qyvywv (Phil. 142), apparently metri gratia. 





'Sing. 5, plur. 8—And. 699, 1097, Hel. 1580, Ion 1111, IA. 343, Or. 897) 
Phoen. 973, 1586. 

2 Aesch. Cho. 975. 

3TI, p. 9. 

*Four times : Agam. 109, 619, Supp. 526, Sept. 127. 

δ See θρόνοι (pp. 67-72) and σκῆπτρα (pp. 37-39) for citations including 
κράτη. 

δ But the singular 6 times, Prom. 948, Agam. 104, 258, 1470, Cho. 480, 
Supp. 425. 

7Kummerer considers it plurale tantum in Sophocles for the ‘‘ Herrschaft’’ 
meaning. 

8 Cf. the singular in Ant. 873, OC. 375. The plurals occur OT. 201, 237, 
586, 758, Ant. 60, 166, 173. 


96 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


In Euripides the singular becomes the more common number 
for the meaning in question. Such is the case in Bacch. 213: 
"Exiovos παῖς, ᾧ κράτος δίδωμι γῆς." 
The plural is found four times in Euripides, one instance of 
which has a place here—Hipp. 5: 
τοὺς μὲν σέβοντας τἀμὰ πρεσβεύω κράτη. 
(3) Opdvo.—See pages 67--72. 
(4) σκῆπτρα---εε pages 37-39. 


3. 
MARRIAGE, WEDLOCK. 


The pluralizing of words of this meaning most likely has its 
origin in the early and persistent plural of words meaning bed 
and the like.” The two classes of words often approach in 
meaning, and in fact have a point of coincidence in the sense of 
marital relations, repeated intercourse.* 

It is not meant, to be sure, that γάμοι, for example, always 
carries such a meaning, but merely to point out the psychological 
process of the transition. 

A comparison of the uses of δέμνια, εὐναί and γάμοι shows a con- 
fusion of terms and a consequent extension of pluralization, 
under the influence of δέμνια and other plurals for couch. 

Compare Hesiod Theog. 1293-4 : 

᾿Αταλάντη φεύγουσ᾽ ἱμερόεντα γάμον 
χρυσῆς ᾿Αφροδίτης δῶρα 

with Soph. Trach. 109 : 
ἐνθυμίοις εὐναῖς ἀνανδρώτοισι τρύχεσθαι. 

In the former case γάμον is δῶρα, equals εὐναί (Liebesakte )*, but 
as yet resists the plural ; while in the latter citation Tragedy has 
εὐναῖς aS a mere equivalent of λέκτρῳ. 





' Similarly ib. Cyc. 119, Herc. Fur. 464, 543, Hel. 68, Tro. 949. 

*See pages 76-78. 

8 Cf. Kummerer, p. 18 and Volp, p. 68; also Witte who takes the same 
view (p. 29). 

‘Witte mentions εὐνή as meaning bed in Homer and then Ljiebesakt 
(ε 126); then εὐνή gradually assumes the plural ; γάμος of similar meaning 
would then follow εὐνή to the plural in Tragedy. 





The Poetic Plural of Greek 7) ragedy 97 


Hesiod avoided γάμους, but not so the dramatists as may be 
seen in such passages as Prom. 765, 
TOV σῶν γάμων μνηστῆρος 
and OC: 945-6, 


both of which—among others—apparently contain the notion 
above-mentioned. 

Homer has the plural but once.’ The meaning there however 
is the indefinite one of marriage-scene,* or probably marriage- 
feast. 























| Homer Aeschylus Sophocles | Euripides 
Sing. Plur. | Sing. Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. Plur. 
. γάμοι 34 1 | 16 1 | 6 | 18 | 43 | 149 
νυμφεῖα δ τῷ lo | τὰ re) yA ἐν ὌΧ: o | 3 
νυμφεύματα ο | oO rd ter et wer ἘΞΉΧῪΣ | 8 
ὑμέναιοι Fost ἢ I Gt ee jane 13 15 
μνηστεύματα "We ala ο ο | δι Wea ο 2 
(1) γάμοι. 


In Aeschylus‘ the plural pertains to but one marriage—six 
times. 

In Sophocles’ the plural commonly refers to but one marriage. 
The plural has a concrete force* and serves a dramatic purpose 
in Trach. 1139: 

ὡς προσεῖδε τοὺς ἔνδον γάμους 
(γάμους being Iole, whose name Hyllus contemptuously avoids). 
Uses similar to this are found in Euripides, e.g. Hipp. 1026: 





ΤΣ 491: ἐν τῇι (πόλει) μέν pa γάμοι τ᾽ ἔσαν εἰλαπίναι τε. 

280 Leaf inlerprets γάμοι, quoting Monro. 

ὃ Not found as a substantive in Euripides. 

* Prom. 559, 739, 947, Sept. 779, Agam. 1156, Supp. 331. 

5 Plurals: OC. 526, 751, 945, 962, 978. 989, OT. 825, 1403, 1492, El. 494, 
971, Trach. 504, 546, 843, 1139, Ant. 575, 870, Frag. 561. 

® Similarly νυμφεῖα (Med. 18, Tro. 7), \éxea (Eur. El. 481), νυμφεύματα 
(And. 193), νυμφευτήρια (Tro. 252). 


98 The Poetic Plural of Greek 7) ragedy. 


δμνύμι τῶν σῶν μήποθ᾽ 'ἅψασθαι γάμων 
and Med. 18: 
γάμοις ᾿Ιάσων βασιλικοῖς εὐνάζεται. 
In either case the purposeful avoidance of the name is obvious. 

Of the very frequent occurrence of the plural for the singular 
in the common meaning only two are cited from Euripides— 
Phoen. 424: 

dp εὐτυχεῖς οὖν τοῖς γάμοις ἢ δυστυχεῖς ; 
ΤΆ: 
κἄπειτα δαίσεις τοὺς γάμους ἐς ὕστερον ; 
(2) νυμφεῖα. 
Sophocles’ Trach. γ-8: 
νυμφείων (marriage as such) ὄκνον 
ἄλγιστον ἔσχον, εἴ τις Αἰτωλὶς γυνή. 
Same play verse 920: 
ὦ λέχη τε καὶ vyude® ἐμά (bridal chamber). 
But Ant. 568 (of the fiancée”) : 
ἀλλὰ κτενεὶς νυμφεῖα TOD σαυτοῦ τέκνου ; 
(3) νυμφεύματα. 
OT. 980 : 
σὺ Seis τὰ μητρὸς μὴ φοβοῦ νυμφεύματα.ὃ 
Tro. 419-20: 
ἕπου δέ μοι 
πρὸς ναῦς, καλὸν νύμφευμα (bride’) τῷ στρατηλάτῃ 
with which compare the plural in Euripides Andromache 192-193: 
| εἶπ᾽ ὦ νεᾶνι τῷ σ᾽ ἐχεγγύῳ λόγῳ 
πεισθεῖσ᾽ ἀπωθῶ γνησίων νυμφευμάτων (husband). 

The regular use of the plural of such words when the meaning 
is concrete suggests metrical influence in case. of the lone use of 
the singular. 

(4) ὑμέναιοι means wedding-song in Homer,* Aeschylus,’ and 





‘The singular in Sophocles is always a thalamus nuptialis. 

2See footnote 6, p. 97. 

8 For similar uses in Euripides, see Phoen. 1204, And. 20, 988, 1232, IA. 
832, IT. 365, El. 361. 

* The only example is = 493. 

°Agam. 707. 


The Poetic Plural of Greck Tr ragedy. 99 


Sophocles,’ but it becomes indentified with γάμοι in Euripides, 
both in the singular’ and the plural.* 

(5) μνηστεύματα is found only in the plural—Hel. 1514, and 
Phoen. 570. 


4. 
OTHER ABSTRACTS. 


The more important poetic uses of Abstracts have already been 
mentioned. It would be unprofitable, no doubt, to give a de- 
tailed account of certain other Abstracts whose plurals are com- 
mon in poetry. Many of them are not infrequent in prose and 
especially in Isocrates, in whose writings ‘‘the plural is so 
marked a mannerism and is so often suggested by the avoidance 
of hiatus that it is not necessary to insist on sharp distinctions 
in that author’.’’® 

In Tragedy, too, hiatus and other metrical considerations are 
in many instances to be considered determining factors. This 
does not preclude the fact that the plural of itself often has a 
rhetorical, poetic value. 

The plural often assumes a concrete force and denotes repeated 
acts of a given kind’, or successive manifestations of the same 
sensation’. The suggestion of Kummerer® that the plural in- 
intensifies the meaning is probably true in some instances. 

As a matter of convenience three groups are added here, 
which of course bear no necessary relation, one to the others. 

(a) Emotion, passion, affliction. 





1Sing. OT. 422, plur. Ant. 813 (indefinite plural). 

7Ase.g. IA. 430, 624. 

3 As e.g. IA. 1079, Hipp. 552, 554. 

* Gildersleeve, op. cit., § 42. 

5 Cf. English Prayer Book : ‘‘ Forgive us all our sins, negligences and ig- 


norances,’’ and note analogy to ‘‘sins’’. With a similar concrete force is 
κράτη (‘‘ powerful deeds ’’), Eur. Phoen. 1760. 
δ Cf. note 5. 


1 E.g. Prom. 879 (quoted p. 100, 8. v. waviac). 
δ τον, IE, p. Τῷ; 

















100 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 
Homer Aeschylus | Sophocles | Euripides 
Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. 
Ξ ----ὔ----- : 
| 
ὀργαί fe) | oO Io | 6 27 4 27 16 
μανίαι ο | ο 2 5 Ι "6 10 
νόσοι ο | ο 21 | 6 45 9 40 10 
F 
πόθοι ο ο 5 ο 12 Ι 25 2 
θυμοί 759} o |17(18)| 1(0)| 28 ο 32 ο 


























From a comparison of the figures it will be seen that Homer 
is not responsible for these plurals of Tragedy: it is an innova- 
tion of the later poets. 

(1) ὀργαί. 

Prom. 315: 

ἀλλ᾽ ὦ ταλαίπωρ᾽, as ἔχεις ὀργὰς ἄφες, 
where the plural suggests the outbursts of wrath. 
Compare the four plurals of Sophocles.” Med. 1149-51: 
πόσις δὲ σὸς 
ὀργὰς ἀφῇρει καὶ χόλον νεάνιδος 
λέγων τάδ (ε). 
(2) μανίαι. 
Prom. 878-79: 
ὑπό μ᾽ αὖ σφάκελος καὶ φρενοπληγεῖς 
μανίαι (fits of madness) θάλπουσι. 
Similarly in verse 1057 : 
τί χαλᾷ μανιῶν ; 
Ant. 960-61 ° ; 
κεῖνος ἐπέγνω μανίαις 


4 Ν \ > , 4 
ψαύων εὸν θεὸν ἐν κερτομίοις γλώσσαις. 





' The mere figures would be misleading. In Homer the meaning is re- 
stricted to seat of the life-principle, seat of anger; but in Attic the plural 
denotes the outward manifestations. 

? Ajax 640, Ant. 354 (dyopac-M ; opyac-L,), 956, 1199. 

δ Cf. 16. 959 where the singular seems to be in contrast as meaning state 
of madness. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. IOI 


In Euripides also the plural regularly means successive attacks 
of rage, unless we except IT. 283-4, where one paroxysm is 
is meant : 
Κἀπεστέναξεν ὠλένας τρέμων ἄκρας 
μανίαις ᾿ ἀλαίνων, καὶ βοᾷ κυναγὸς ὡς, 

with which compare verses 980-91’ : 
ἢν yap θεᾶς κατάσχωμεν βρέτας 
μανιῶν τε λήξω κτέ. 

(3) νόσοι. 

Aesch. 586-87: 

τίς γὰρ ἂν κατέπαυσεν Ἥ--- 
ρας νόσους ἐπιβούλους. 

The νόσους means the two afflictions sent upon Io—that of the 
heifer-form and the gadfly. 

‘In Sophocles the two verses following are noteworthy—OT. 
960 and 962: 

πότερα δόλοισιν, ἢ νόσου ξυναλλαγῇ ; 
νόσοις ὃ τλήμων, ὡς ἔοικεν ἔφθιτο. 

There is apparently no call for a sharp distinction nor indeed 
is there any such distinction. Note that (1) each verse is 
isolated ; (2) νόσων could take the place of νόσου, while on the 
other hand νόσῳ could not be employed in the latter unless the 
verse should be entirely reconstructed ; (3) both verses are 
spoken by the same person, in close succession. 

A similar freedom of Enallage is observable where the plural 
equals μανίαι (throes of frenzy), as in Soph. Aj.59-60 : 

ἐγὼ δὲ φοιτῶντ᾽ ἄνδρα μανιάσιν νόσοις ὥτρυνον, 
and same play 66: 
δείξω δὲ Kai σοὶ τήνδε περιφανῆ νόσον. 

For Euripides may be noted Or. 280-81 : 

αἰσχύνομαί σε μεταδιδοὺς πόνων ἐμῶν 


ὄχλον τε παρέχων παρθένῳ νόσοις ἐμαῖς (troubles) 





1 But avoidance of hiatus is suggested by the plural. 
2 Also 10, 83 f. 


δ᾿ Note the metrical form of the dative plural adjective, whose last syllable 
is long; and compare singular dative form. 


102 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


As being used once in the sense of ὀργαί we may include here 
the concrete noun γλῶσσαι. 
. (4) γλῶσσαι. 

To κερτομίοις ὀργαῖς of Sophocles Antigone 956, compare the 
similar expression of verses 960-61 : 

κεῖνος ἐπέγνω μανίαις 
ψαύων τὸν θεὸν ἐν κερτομίοις γλώσσαις. 

In each case the meaning is vituperative thrusts: the γλώσσαις 
is an interpretation of the concreteness in such plurals as ὀργαί, 
It is bold and poetic indeed to say—hurl tongues of wrath" | 

(5) θυμοί. 

It seems strange that the plural is read but once in all Trag- 
edy ; even here the authority is variant—Aj. 717-8: 

Αἴας μετανεγνώσθη 
θυμῶν ᾿Ατρεΐδαις μεγάλων τε νεικέων. 

Indications favor θυμῶν". The plural is found in Attic prose.* 

(Ὁ) Distributives*. 

Such plural uses generally stand under the influence of other 
plurals in the sentence.® For example note the two following 
fron: Sophocles—OC. 552: 

τὰς αἱματηρὰς ὀμμάτων διαφθοράς 
and Phil. 304: 
ot πλοῖ τοῖσι σώφροσιν βροτῶν. 


But similar uses occur in prose.°® 





1This is merely a poetic extension of such a use as that of Aj. 198-99: 
πάντων καγχαζάντων 
γλώσσαις βαρυάλγητα, 
where there is more than one person : While all men mock with taunts most 
grievous. Cf. κακὴ γλῶσσα, slander (Pindar 4, 505), and Soph. El. 596— 
πᾶσαν ἱέναι γλῶσσαν, let the tongue loose. 
2 θυμῶν, T and Triclinius ; others, θυμόν or θυμόν τ(ε) ; Hermann and Jebb 
θυμοῦ τ( ). 
8. E.g. Plato Legg. 11, 934 A; φθόνοις ἢ θυμοῖς δυσιάτοις. 
* Cf. Kihner, op. cit., Vol. I, 4348 and Gildersleeve op. cit., ὃ 42. 
5 Cf. Plautus Mil. Glo. 942 ἢ: 
Ubi facta erit conlatio malitiarum 
Haud vereor ne nos subdola perfidia pervincamur. 
ὁ Cf. Antiphon I, 28. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 103 


(c) Of Theft. 

Euripides provides some bold uses of certain abstracts meaning 
theft, following a similar use in Aeschylus of but one word— 

(1) KAozai,' 

Aesch. Agam. 399-402 ch. : 

| Πάρις ἐλθὼν | ἐς δόμον τὸν “Arpeidar | 
noxvve ξενίαν mpaee (ine κλοπαῖσι γυναικός. 
Or. 1497-8 ch. 
ἤτοι ἐξρμθοισω ἢ ἢ πάγων | τέχναισιν ἢ θεῶν κλοπαῖς, 
where κλοπαῖς may stand under the influence of τέχναισιν," the 
plural suggesting the devices employed in a given theft. 

It is to be noted that the plural—of the theft of one person— 
originated in a choral passage, where as has been seen. already 
innovations more often make their initial appearance. 

A strange extension of plural usage is that of Hel. 1765 : 

ἐπεὶ κλοπὰς σὰς ἐκ δόμων ἐδέξατο (ἡἣ νῆσος), 
where κλοπὰς ods is: Thee who wast stolen. 

(2) ἁρπαγαί. 

In Aeschylus the plural occurs twice* and the subject of the 
action is plural in each case. - In Euripides all but two instances 
of the plural have reference to more than one act of plundering ; 
the two refer to the rape of Helen.° 

"Cyc. 280-81 : 

ἢ τῆς κακίστης οἱ μετήλθεθ᾽ ἁρπαγὰς 

Ἑλένης Σκαμάνδρου γείτον᾽ ᾿Ιλίου πόλιν ; 
Hel. 1320-22: 

μάτηρ travoe πόνων 

μαστεύουσα πόνους 

θυγατρὸς ἁρπαγὰς δολίους. 

1 Occurs Aesch. sing. 1 (Agam. 534), plur. 1; Soph. sing. 2; Eur. sing. 1, 
plur. 5. 


2Cf. Hel. 1175 ἢ: κλοπαῖς θηρώμενον Ἑλένην, and IT. 1400: καὶ κλοπαῖς 
σύγγνωθ' ἐμαῖς (1.6. theft of the βρέτας). 

8 Or δόλοι as in Eur. Herc. Fur. 100. 

*Sept. 351, Supp. 510. 

5 Here may be added, too, dvaprayds, Hel. 49 ff. 
κἀγὼ μὲν ἐνθάδ᾽ εἴμ᾽, ὁ δ᾽ ἄθλιος πόσις 
στράτευμ᾽ ἀθροίσας τὰς ἐμὰς ἀναρπαγὰς 
θηρᾷ πορευθεὶς ᾿Ιλίου πυρώματα. 





ΟΗΑΡΤΕΕΊ. 


PART THREE. 


Thus far, attention has been paid to the force of the plural 
when used for the singular, and the different poetic purposes 
the same serves, only occasional references however being made 
to the question of metre. Metreshould certainly not be neglected 
in the study of the subject as has been the case in the disserta- 
tions of Juhl, Kummerer and Volp; for metrical influence is to 
be seen both in Homer and Tragedv. ‘If the poet of Tragedy 
employed the plural purposely in every case to give a sense of 
vagueness, fullness, complexity, or for some other rhetorical or 
dramatic purpose, the causes of Enallage would be purely 
psychological. Butif in many instances a free change of number 
suggests caprice ; if in a given verse which is grammatically 
isolated there is a plural where the singular would hardly be 
possible from a metrical standpoint ; if certain plural uses seem 
practically a convention—as in Euripides especially; if the 
difference in meaning between the singular and plural is indis- 
tinguishable, there is good reason for recognizing metre as a 
very important factor in the heavy shift toward the plural, and 
so to (1) Homeric usage, (2) analogy, and (3) the frequent 
poetic value of the plural, is added another contributing cause— 
(4) metrical convenience. 


Metre. 


The metrical causes contributing most largely to plural usage 
are: (1) Avoidance of hiatus; (2) The fact that irrational syl- 
lables are allowable only in the odd feet of the iambic trimeter 
and in the even feet of the trochaic tetrameter catalectic'; (3) 
The elective forms of the dative plural.’ 





1Cf. Schmidt, Rhythmic and Metric, p. 84. 


2 As e.g. δόμοις, δόμοισι, δόμοισιν ; κοίταις, κοίταισι, κοίταισιν ; ἅρμασι, ἅρμασιν. 





The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 105 


For the trimeter especially two things are noticeable: (1) 
Metrical convenience gives au impetus toward the plural to 
second declension nouns of pyrrhic sequence, as¢. g. δόμος", γάμος, 
ὄχος, φόνος, πάγος, τάφος. (2) Neuter nouns in —ya are found 
largely in the plural. 

αἰγιαλοί." 
Compare the long dative form of IA. 210-211 : 
εἶδον αἰγιαλοῖσι 
παρά τε κροκάλαις δρόμον ἔχοντα σὺν ὅπλοις 
with IT. 425: 
παρ᾽ ἅλιον αἰγιαλόν. 


αἵματα. 

ΕἸ. 1172-73: 

ἀλλ᾽ οἵδε μητρὸς νεοφόνοισιν αἵμασι 

πεφυρμένοι βαίνουσιν ἐξ οἴκων πόδα. 
Alc. 496 : 

φάτνας ἴδοις av αἵμασιν πεφυρμένας. 
In the former, note the long form of the modifying adjective ; 

in the latter, the ending -ow which makes a long syllable. 


ἀναδήματα. 
Metre determines the number in the only instances of this 
word, which are found in Hipp. 83: 
ἀνάδημα δέξαι χειρὸς εὐσεβοῦς ἄπο 
and Eur. El. 882: 
δέξαι κόμης ons βοστρύχων ἀνάδήματα. 


2s 4 
avaKkTopa, 





1 Cf. the ratio of singular to plural in the following : 56u0s—69 : 709, οἶκος 
115 : 244, δῶμα 77 : 222. 

2 The two instances cited are the only ones in Tragedy.; Homer has only 
the singular—4 times. 

5Occurs Homer 117-0; Aeschylus 51-8; Sophocles 27-1; Euripides 
100-10. 

‘Found only in Euripides and Sophocles, and also Adesp. 262: Πυθέων 
ἀνακτόρων. 


106 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Of the same temple are And. 42-3: 
δειματουμένη δ᾽ ἐγὼ 
δόμων πάροικον Θέτιδος εἰς ἀνάκτορον, ΄ 
and verses 117-0 : 
ὦ γύναι, ἃ Θέτιδος δάπεδον 
καὶ ἀνάκτορα θασ-- 
δαρὸν οὐδὲ λείπεις. 
ἄντρα". 

That Tragedy upon the whole has a preference for the plural 
has proof: (1) The singular may be metrically convenient in 
(e.g.) Phil. 27, an isolated verse : 

δοκῶ yap οἷον εἶπας ἄντρον εἴσορᾶν 
as alsoin Eum. 193 and Aesch. Frag. 261: (2) No metrica 
reason can be assigned for the plural of Aj. 1263: 

tis ad παρ᾽ ἄντροις θόρυβος ἵσταται βοῆς ; 
(3) In Euripides’ Cyclops where the singular occurs three times 
and the plural fourteen times of the same cave, the singular in 
each case may be accounted for, but not so with the plural ; it is 
actually preferred e.g. in verse 100: 

Σατύρων πρὸς ἄντροις τόνδ᾽ ὅμιλον εἰσορῶ 
and in verse 288 : 

μὴ TANS πρὸς ἄντρα σοὺς ἀφιγμένους ξένους" 

As for verses 87 and 426, the singular is purely metrical, while 
clearness of expression is apparently responsible for ἄντρου : 

καίτοι φύγοιμ᾽ av, κἀκβέβηκ᾽ ἄντρου" μυχῶν. 

In Ion 958, however, the singular appears where the plural is 
equally admissible : 

καὶ πῶς ἐν ἄντρῳ παῖδα σὸν λιπεῖν ἔτλης ; 
ἀντίθυρα. 

Compare the lone uses of Homer and Tragedy— π 159: 

στῆ δὲ κατ᾽ ἀντίθυρον κλισίης ᾿Οδυσῆι φανεῖσα, 

Sophocles Electra 1433: 


a > > ΄ “ ΄ 
βᾶτε Κατ ἀντιθύρων οσον τάχιστα. 





‘Occurs Homer 12-0, Aeschylus 2-4, Sophocles 1-5, Euripides 11-27. 
2 Cf. the alternative κἀκβέβηκ᾽ ἄντρων μυχῶν. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 107 


ἅρματα". 
Homer leads the way in yielding to the convenience of metre— 
® 438-9 : Ζεὺς δὲ πατὴρ Ἴδηθεν εὔτροχον ἅρμα και ἵππους 
Οὐλυμπόνδε δίωκε, 
0441: ἅρματα δ᾽ ἂμ βωμοῖσι τίθει, κατα Nita πετάσσας. 
In Pers. 190-191 is found an instance of the long dative form: 
ἅρμασιν ᾿ δ᾽ ὕπο 
ζεύγνοσιν αὐτώ. ἐ " 
The plural secures a long syllable in Hipp. 1166: 
οἰκεῖος αὐτὸν ὥλεσ᾽ ἁρμάτων ὄχος 
but the singular appears in verse 1195 of the same chariot : 
[πώλοις ὅὁμαρτῇ.} πρόσπολοι δ᾽ ἐφ᾽ ἅρματος. 
Particularly convenient seems the plural in Hel. 1180-1: 
λύεθ᾽ ἱππικὰς 
φάτνας ὁπαδοί, κἀκκομίζεθ᾽ ἅρματα 
ἅρπαι. 
The poetic plural appears once—in Ion 191-02: 
Aepvaiov ὕδραν évaipe 
χρυσέαις ἅρπαις ὁ Διὸς παῖς, 
where the dative singular both of adjective and noun would be 
difficult of use. 
ἀρτάναιϊ. 
The poetic plural occurs only in Sophocles Ant. 54: 
πλεκταῖσιν ἀρτάναισι λωβᾶται βίον 
(where the long dative form is doubly convenient). 
Compare the singular in OT. 1266: 
χαλᾷ κρεμαστὴν ἀρτάνην. ; 
avAral® , 
The poetic plural appears only in Sophocles Ant. 945: 
ἀλλάξαι δέμας ἐν χαλκοδέτοις αὐλαῖς" 
and Trach. 901 : 


καὶ παῖδ᾽ ἐν αὐλαῖς εἶδε κοῖλα δέμνια, 





1Occurs Homer 21-46, Aeschylus 5-5, Sophocles 1-2 (but there is no 
plural for singular here), Euripides 15-29. 

2 See ἐώραι, p. 113. 

3 Occurs Homer 45-0, Aeschylus 1-0, Sophocles 3-4, Euripides 13-1. 


108 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 


Note how the plural of the noun or its modifier avoids hiatus. 
avAua'. 
Phil. 954’: 
ἀλλ᾽ αὐανοῦμαι τῷδ᾽ ἐν αὐλίῳ μόνος. 
Pertaining to the cave are the following—Cycl. 345: 
ἀλλ᾽ ἕρπετ᾽ εἴσω, τῷ κατ᾽ αὔλιον θεῷ 
and same play, verse 593: 
dards δ᾽ ἔσωθεν αὐλίων ὠθεῖ καπνόν. 
The occasion of the plural seems obvious. 
αὐχένες *, 
Only one instance of the poetic plural can be cited—Soph. 
Frag. 598, 4: 
ἥτις [πῶλος] 
θερὸς θερισθῇ ξανθὸν αὐχένων ἀπο. 
In striking comparison with this is the singular collective of 
Rhes. 303-4 : 
χρυσῆ δὲ πλάστιγξ αὐχένα ζυγηφόρον 


, ” / 2 / 
πώλων ἔκλῃε χιόνος ἐξαυγεστέρων. 


βάκτρα. 

The poetic plural isin Euripides only. Phoen. 1719 ch.: 

Baxrpa πρόσφερ᾽, ὦ τέκνον. 
Ion 216--218 ch.: 

καὶ βρόμιος ἄλλον ἀπολέμοισι 

κισσίνοισι βάκτροις 

ἐναίραι Tas τέκνων 6 βακχεύς. 

In the latter, note the value of the long dative plural forms ; 
and note too that both plurals are in choral passages. 


βρόχοι. 
Poetic plural in Euripides only. 
And. 843: 


τί με βρόχων eipyes ; 





1 Occurs Sophocles 3-1, Euripides 1-2. 
2See p. 66 and foot-note 2. 
* Occurs Homer 36-1, Aeschylus 2-1, Sophocles 2-1, Euripides 7-4. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 109 


Hipp. 779: 
γυνή, κρεμαστοῖς ἐν βρόχοις ἠρτημένη. 

In the latter, hiatus is twice avoided by the plural. 

γάμοι". ; 
The figures for all Tragedy are—singular 65, plural 177, the 
plural predominating almost three to one. To this result the 
elective forms of the dative were strong contributors. The dative 
singular is found but once in Tragedy—Hel. 1097—being regu- 
larly displaced by γάμοις, γάμοισι(ν). 
For the free play of numbers in the other cases compare Prom. 
648-49: , 
τί παρθενεύει δαρὸν ἐξόν σοι γάμου 
τυχεῖν μεγίστου, 

with verses 729-40: 
πικροῦ δ᾽ ἔκυρσας ὦ κόρη, τῶν σῶν γάμων 
μνηστῆρος. 

The accusative plural serves verse-convenience in (6. g.) 
Ant. 575: 

Αἴδης 6 παύσων τούσδε τοὺς γάμους ἔφυ 
and IA. 720: 


4 ‘ , > 7 
κἄπειτα δαίσεις τοὺς γάμους és ὕστερον. 


γένυες. 
Compare Soph. El. 195-96 ch.: 
ὅτε οἱ παγχάλκων ἀνταίαἩ _ 
γενύων ὡρμάθη πλαγά 
with Soph. Phil. 1205: 
ἢ γένυν, ἢ βελέων τε, προπέμψατε. 
daires’. 
Compare Ion 807: 
κοινῇ ξυνάψων δαῖτα παιδὶ τῷ νέῳ 
and verses 1130-31° (of the same meal) : 
θύσας δὲ yeverats θεοῖσιν ἢν μακρὸν χρόνον 


/ “ ΄“ 
μένω, παρουσι δαῖτες ἔστωσαν φίλοις. 





'Occurs Homer 34-1, Aeschylus 16-10, Sophocles 6-18, Euripides 43-149. 

?Occurs Homer 80-4, Aeschylus 3-1(true plural), Sophocles 4-0, Euri- 
pides 30-2. 

3 Cf. also Medea 201. 


{718} The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


deirva', 

Soph. El. 203-04 ch.: 

ὦ νύξ, ὦ δείπνων ἀρρήτων 

᾿ ἔκπαγλ᾽ ἄχθη. 

Ion 1124: 

πρὸς δεῖπνα θυσίας θ᾽ ἃς θεοῖς ὡπλίζετο. 
Euripides apparently prefers the plural, for the lone singular 

there could be accounted for metrically—Phoen. 728 : 
GAN ἀμφὶ δεῖπνον οὖσι προσβάλω δόρυ ; 


δέλτοι. 
Prom. 781: 
ἢν ἐγγράφου σὺ μνήμοσιν δέλτοις φρενῶν. 
Soph. Frag. 540: 


θὲς δ᾽ ἐν φρενὸς δέλτοισι τοὺς ἐμοὺς Adpovs. 


IT. 787: . 
τάδ᾽ ἐστὶ τὰν δέλτοισι ἐγγεγραμμένα 
ΙΓ which compare δέλτου in verse 727. 
δέμνια". 
The precedent of Homer has persistent weight in Tragedy. 
The two uses of the singular are Alc. 183-4: 
κυνεῖ δὲ προσπίτνουσα, πᾶν" δὲ δέμνιον 
ὀφθαλμοτέγκτῳ δεύευται πλημμύριδι, 
and Or. 229-30: 
[td0v.] φίλον τοι τῷ νοσοῦντι δέμνιον 
ἀνιαρὸν ὃν τὸ KTH ἀναγκαῖον δ᾽ ὅμως, 
where the modifier ἀνιαρόν avoids hiatus. It is clear that the 
poet avoided the singular. 


δεσμοί". 
The plural referring to one instrument is probably found only 
in Tragedy. 





‘Occurs Homer 37-0, Aeschylus 5-2, Sophocles 1-3, Euripides 1-9. 
“Occurs Homer 0-13, Aeschylus 0-0, Sophocles o~2, Euripides 2-15. 


ὅ πάντα is an impossible reading for the line and hence the singular— 
δέμμιον. ᾿ 


*Occurs Homer 20-11, Aeschylus 4-9, Sophocles 1-3, Euripides 3-18. 


The Poetic Plural.of Greek Tragedy. 111 


For the play on number compare Prom. 96-07: 
τοιόνδ᾽ ὃ νέος ταγὸς μακάρων 
ἐξηῦρ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἐμοὶ δεσμὸν ἀεικῆ 
with verses 524-25: τόνδε γὰρ σῴζων ἐγὼ 
δεσμοὺς ἀεικεῖς καὶ δύας ἐκφυγγάνω '. 
δίφροι. 

Compare Soph. ΕἸ. 749-50: 

στρατὸς δ᾽ ὅπως ὁρᾷ νιν ἐκπεπτωκότα 
δίφρων, ἀνωλόλυξε κτὲ. 

with Frag. 873, 2: 
αὐτοῖσιν ὅπλοις καὶ τετραόρῳ δίφρῳ. 

But metre alone cannot always explain the plural here or in 
Euripides, as shows Soph. El. 742 : 

ὡρμᾶθ᾽ ὃ τλήμων ὀρθὸς ἐξ ὀρθῶν δίφρων. 
δόλοιἷ. 

In Homer the genitive, ἀαΐννε and accusative plural are found, 
while in Tragedy only the convenient dative forms δόλοις, δόλοισι( v) 
appear—except in three Aeschylean verses, 846, 880, and Eur. 
Frag. 288. Note such uses as δόλοις ὀλούμεθα, δόλοισιν 7, δόλοισιν 
οὐ (Cho. 888, OT. 960 and Phil. 91 respectively). 

δόμοι. : 

The figures for Tragedy are: singular 69, plural 709, or about 
ten to one in favor of the plural. The plural surely must respond 
better to poetic feeling in case of this word—as well as numerous 
others,—for the use of the plural is extended beyond any bounds 
of metrical convenience ; the plural even becomes the preferred 
form where metre suffers either number with equal readiness. 
The plural has become conventionalized in Tragedy’, though for 
Homer such is not the case. 





‘1Similarly οὐ Eur. Hipp. 1237 with 76. 1244. 

3 Occurs Homer 82-7, Aeschylus 1-0, Sophocles 1-6, Euripides 4-5. 

8 Occurs Homer 32-10, Aeschylus 9-3, Sophocles 12-7, Euripides 23-5. 

* Occurs Homer 89-67, Aeschylus 116-113,Sophocles 4-72, Euripides 49-524. 

> Witte says : ‘‘ δόμος---δόμοι ἰδὲ fiir die Tragiker a priori pluralisch gewesen ’’ 
and ‘‘der Singular mussin den Chorpartien entstanden sein’’ (p.51). The 
following figures seem to give weight to that belief : 

Aeschylus, singular, Choral parts, 12 times, Trimeter 4 times ; Sophocles, 
singular, Choral parts, 2 times, Trimeter 1 time ; Euripides, singular, Choral 
parts, 21 times, Trimeter 27 times. 


112 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Strangely enough the genitive singular does not appear in all 
Tragedy, the dative singular occurs certainly but twice’, the ac- 
cusative singular is not so common as the accusative plural and 
the nominative plural is comparatively rare. The decided pre- 
ference of δόμων and the three dative plural forms must have ex- 
tended its influence throughout the declension, except the nom- 
inative plural where the ending is vocalic. Metre must be con- 
sidered a factor in the general result. 


δρόσοι. 
Compare Hel. 1384: 
[ἔδωκα] χρόνια νίπτρα ποταμίας δρόσου 
with Hipp. 78: 
Αἰδὼς δὲ ποταμίαισι κηπεύει δρόσοις. 
Note the adjective form in the latter verse. 


δρυμοί. * 


Compare the singular of Rhes. 289 with the plural of Bacch. 

1229: 
ἔτ᾽ ἀμφὶ δρυμοῖς οἰστροπλῆγας ἀθλώας. 
δώματα". 

For all Tragedy the singular ‘occurs 77 times, the plural 222 
times. The ratio of the plural of δόμος to the singular is 7 to 1, 
while the ratio-for δῶμα is 3 to 1. The disparity may be ac- 
counted for in some measure by the fact that the plural forms of 
the former were convenient for the trimeter, upon the whole, 
while the nominative and accusative plural forms of δώματα is 
singularly inconvenient for that metre ; in fact it seems to occur 
only asthe final word of a verse® or before a vowel*. The dative 
singular does not occur at all in Tragedy and the genitive singu- 
lar is extremely rare. Hence the singular appears nearly invar- 
iably in the form δῶμα (or δῶμ᾽). The plural proves clearly to be 
the preferred form. 


1 Kum. 964, and Eur. Frag. 1132, 8. In Eum. 1032 ἐν δόμωι (M) is corrupt. 

* Occurs Homer 111-137, Aeschylus 12-45, Sophocles 5-15, Euripides 60- 
162. 

Ee Oro az: 

4 Eg. Phoen. 1707 (dwuaé’), 





The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 113 


ἐώραι". 
Appears only in OT. 1264: 
πλεκταῖς ἐώραις ἐμπεπλεγμένην. [v—]. : 

Note the double avoidance of hiatus and compare ἀρτάνην of 

verse 1266. 
ζῶναι. 

The only poetic plural is that of Bacch. 935: 

ζῶναί τέ σοι χαλῶσι κτὲ., 

with which compare the singular in Hec. 762: 
τοῦτόν ποτ᾽ ἔτεκον κἄφερον ζώνης ὕπο. 

θᾶκοι. 
Compare Ant. 999-1000’: 

cis γὰρ παλαιὸν θᾶκον ὀρνιθοσκόπον 
ἵζων 

with Phoen. 840: 
θάκοισιν ἐν ἱεροῖσιν οὗ μαντεύομαι. 

Note too the accusative plural in IA. 618: 

θάκους ἀπήνης ὡς ἂν ἐκλίπω καλῶς 
and Here. Fur. 1097 : 
ἧμαι νεκροῖσι γείτονας θάκους ἔχων. 
θάλαμον" 

The lone instance of the poetic plural in Homer is doubtless 
due to hiatus—y 41 : 

—v vo -- —|—v ὁ | — θαλάμων εὐπηκτων. 

In Tragedy the poetic plural does not appear*, except in Euri- 
pides where it is found several times. The uses in Euripides 
show that he commonly prefers the plural, but not so in Alc. 175, 

κἄπειτα θάλαμον εἰσπεσοῦσα καὶ λέχος 
and verse 187° (if the ms. reading be retained—OdAapov). 


θάνατοι. ὃ 


For examples note Agam. 1342: 





1Cf. ἀρτάναι, p. 107. 

2 Also Eur. Hel. 895. 

Occurs Homer 64-7, Aeschylus 0-2, Sophocles 4-1, Euripides 7-31. 
*See p. 62. 

5 For citations and readings see p. 62 and footmote. 

®Occurs Homer 136-1, Aeschylus 20-5, Sophocles 18-4, Euripides 96-6. 


114 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


ποινὰς θανάτων ἐπικραΐίνει 
and Cho. 53: 
δεσποτῶν θανάτοισι. 

It is significant that the poetic plural is usually found in 

choral passages’. 
θρόνοι. 

The poetic plural is found only in Tragedy—not in Homer. 

In Aeschylus the relative frequency of the dative plural sug- 
gests that the plural crept in through that case and number. 
The convenience of this case is obvious in such expressions as 
ἐν θρόνοις (Cho. 572), θρόνοισί τ᾽ ἀρχαίοισι (Pers. 775), ἐν θρόνοισιν 
ἥμενος (Hum. 47), μαντικοῖσιν ἐν θρόνοις (Kum. 616), μονοσκήπτροισι 
δ᾽ ἐν θρόνοις (Aesch. Supp. 374). 

Where the literal force of the word seems predominant in 
Sophocles in the plural of the word, metre may be called to ac- 
count—El. 267-68 : 

ὅταν θρόνοις Αἴγισ θον ἐνθακοῦντ᾽ ἴδω 
τοῖσι πατρῴοις εἰσίδω κτέ, Where the avoidance of hiatus is 
twice observed, and τοῖς appears in the long form. 

Frag. 144 presents the long form in ἐν θρόνοισιδ. 


κέδροι. 
The only instance of the poetic plural is in Alc. 365-6: 
ἐν ταῖσιν αὐταῖς yap μ᾽ ἐπισκήψω κέδροις 
σοὶ τούσδε θεῖναι. 
κέντρα. 
Soph. Frag. 622, 4: . 
Κωτίλος δ᾽ ἀνὴρ λαβὼν πανοῦργα 
χερσὶ κέντρα κηδεύει πόλιν. 
κλοπαί. 


Compare κλοπαῖσι of Agam. 402‘ with κλοπῆς, same play, verse 
534. 





1 For full citations, see pp. 89-92. 

? Occurs Homer 34-19, Aeschylus 6-14, Sophocles 1-17, Euripides 6-15. 

* For full citations, remarks on the plural in its broader sense, and the 
extreme literal uses in Euripides, see pp. 67-72. 

*Cited p. 103. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 115 


κοῖται". 
Compare Trach. 921-22 : 
ὡς ἔμ᾽ οὔποτε 
δέξεσθ᾽ ἔτ᾽ ἐν κοίταισι ταῖσδ᾽ εὐνάτριαν 
with Soph. El. 272: 
τὸν αὐτοέντην ἡμῖν ἐν κοίτῃ πατρός. 
κολεοί. 

Poetic plural only in IA. 1566-7 : 
ἔθηκεν ὀξὺ χειρὶ φάσγανον σπάσας 
κολεῶν ἔσωθεν κτέ, 

with which compare Hec. 542-4: 
εἶτ᾽ ἀμφίχρυσον φάσγανον κώπης λαβὼν 
ἐξεῖλκε κολεοῦ KTE. 
κρηπῖδες". 
IT. 990-1 : 
ἡνίκ᾽ ἂν κενὰς 
κρηπῖδας εὕρῃ λαΐνας ἀγάλματος 

Ton 38: 
ἤνεγκα καὶ τὸν παῖδα κρηπίδων ἔπι. 

In the above, hiatus is avoided or a long syllable effected by 
the plural. So also a long syllable is effected in the seventh foot 
of Ion 510: ἐξ 

πρόσπολοι γυναῖκες, αἵ τῶνδ᾽ ἀμφὶ κρηπῖδας δόμων, 
with And. 1111--2: 
«ἀνακτόρων κρηπῖδος. 
λαιμοίδ. 

Euripides has the poetic plural four times, the genitive being 
the case so used each time— 

Herac. 821-22: 

ἀλλ᾽ ἀφίεσαν 
λαιμῶν βροτείων εὐθὺς οὔριον φόνον. 

Ion 1064+65 : 

ἢ θηκτὸν ξίφος ἢ 
λαιμῶν ἐξάψει βρόχον ἀμφὶ δειρήν. 





‘Occurs Homer 1-0, Aeschylus 3-2, Sophocles 5-2, Euripides 11-10. 
? Occurs only in Aeschylus 1-0, Sophocles 1-0, Euripides 4-5. 
ὃ Occurs Homer 5-0, Euripides 5-6. 


116 The Poetic Plural of Greek iy ragedy. 


λέκτρα". 

In all Tragedy the singular appears 12 times, the plural 93 
times, λέκτρον being the only form of the singular used. Aeschy- 
lus does not have the singular at all. Sophocles avoids the 
singular, using it only where it prevents a hiatus, and the same 
is usually true for Euripides. The plural therefore seems to be 
the conventional form for Tragedy: certainly metre can af- 
ford no thoroughgoing explanation. 

λέχη". 

For all Tragedy the figures are: singular 80, plural 47—while 
the Homeric figures are: singular 22, plural 27. The drift in 
Tragedy is clearly toward the singular, if the ratio be compared 
with that of Homer. 

For Aeschylus and Sophocles we have the singular 13, the 
plural 8 times; of these λέχος (ὦ 35) occurs 11 times, but λέχη only 
three times ; λέχει and λέχους occur once each ; λεχέων appears 3 
times, in choral parts. 

Chiefly responsible for the disparity of the ratios of Homer 
and Tragedy is the frequent use of the dative plural in the 
former, 18 times out of a total οἵ: 27 plurals. Tragedy avoids 
the dative plural of the word altogether, and also shuns the 
dative singular, a rare form. ‘The explanation is not difficult: 
the dative plural of this particular word presents a variety of 
convenient forms*® for hexameter verse, but not so for the tri- 
meter. ‘Tragedy either uses the singular, or selects some other 
word. 

λιμένες *. 

The poetic plural seems limited to Euripides®. With one ex- 
ception the poetic plurals are found in other metres than the 
trimeter®, and in this one instance the plural avoids hiatus— 


- 





1Occurs Homer 6-4, Aeschylus ο- 5, Sophocles 3-4, Euripides 9-84. 

2 Occurs Homer 22-27, Aeschylus 3-2, Sophocles to-6, Euripides 67-39. 

δλέχεσσι(ν), λεχέεσι(ν), λεχέεσσ᾽ etc. 

1 Occurs Homer 25-9, Tragedy 17-6. 

5 But see on Phil. 936, p. Io. 

6 Trimeter sing. 6, plur. 1, other metres sing. 3, plur. 4. Of course Adesp, 
85---λιμένας els ’Axaixovs—is not taken into account in figures or remarks here 
)see on Aristotle p. 3). 





The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 117 


And. 749: 
τυχοῦσα λιμένας ἦλθες εἰς εὐηνέμους. 
λόχμαι᾽. 

Tragedy has each number one time—Bacch. 730: 

λόχμην κενώσας ἔνθ᾽ ἐκρύπτομεν δέμας | κτὲ. 

Bacch. 957: 

καὶ μὴν δοκῶ σφᾶς ἐν λόχμαις ὄρνιθος ὡς | κτέ. 

: μανίαι. 

Compare IT. 82-83’: 

ἐλθὼν δὲ σ᾽ ἠρώτησα πῶς τροχηλάτου 
μανίας ἂν ἔλθοιμ᾽ εἰς τέλος πόνων T ἐμῶν 

with verse 282-84 of the same play*: 
κἀπεστέναξεν ὥλενας τρέμων ἄκρας 
μανίαις ἀλαίνων, καὶ βοᾷ κυναγὸς ὥς *. 

μέλαθρα. 

Homer has the singular 7 times and the plural not at all, while 
in Tragedy the singular is used 18 times and the plural gt times, 
or 1 to 5 in favor of the plural. With this word the work of 
analogy is almost complete. The singular is even avoided in 
Tragedy, as‘e. g. the lone singular of Agam. 1434 shows : 

ov μοι φόβου μέλαθρον ἐλπὶς ἐμπατεῖ, 
where the singular serves convenience. Again, compare Phil. 
146-7 : 

ὅπόταν δὲ μόλῃ 

δεινὸς ὁδίτης τῶνδ᾽ ἐκ μελάθρων (cave), 
where the singular may be substituted—with verse 1453 of the 
same play : 

ὦ μέλαθρον" ξύμφρουρον ἐμόν, 
where metre will not suffer the plural noun and adjective. 


, 
μέτωπα. 





1 Homer has the singular one time—T 439. 

2 See also verse 307. 

5See page roo and note. 

* Also cf. verse 981. 

®> Homer 7-0, Aeschylus 1-11, Sophocles 1-4, Euripides 16-76. 
ὁ Other cases Eur. IA. 612, 1160, IT. 367, 1216, Or. 378. 

7 Homer 11-1, Aeschylus 1-1, Sophocles 1-2, Euripides 1-2. 


118 The Poétic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


There is one poetic plural in Tragedy—Hel. 1567-8 : 
μονάμπυκον δὲ Μενέλεως ψήχων δέρην 
μέτωπά T ἐξέπεισεν εἰσ βῆναι δόρυ. 
μίτραι. 
Note the long dative forms in Eur. El. 162-3: 
ov μίτραισι γυνή σε 
δέξατ᾽ οὐδ᾽ ἐπὶ στεφάνοις 
and Hec. 923-4: 
ἐγὼ δὲ πλόκαμον ἀναδέτοις 
μίτραισιν ἐρρυθμιζόμαν. 
In each case the passages are choral’. 
pdpow” . 
Sophocles Ant. 1312-13°: 
ὡς αἰτίαν ye τῶνδε κἀκείνων ἔχων 


ΡΥ ΤΑΣ οἱ θ ΄ a ἣν > , ΄ 
προς THS ὕσανουσὴῆς THTO εἐπέεσ KYTTOV μόρων. 


μοχοί. 

For free and easy enallage in μυχός and ἄντρον, compare Prom. 

113-4: 
κτύπου yap ἀχὼ χάλυβος διῇξεν ἄντρων 
μυχόν, ; 

Cyc. 480. 

καίτοι φύγοιμ᾽ ἄν, κἀκβέβηκ᾽ ἄντρου μυχῶν. 
ναοί“. 

The poetic plural does not appear till Euripides, but with him 
it is common, ¢. ρ΄. 8 times in the IT. and τὸ times in the Ion, 
the singular occurring but once in both plays. 

Compare Ion 38-39: 

Tov παῖδα κρηπίδων ἔπι 
τίθημι ναοῦ τοῦδε κτέ. 
with verse 314 of the same play: 
ναοῖσι δ᾽ οἰκεῖς τοισίδ᾽ ἢ κατὰ στέγας ; 
Also note verse 1384 of the same play : 
ὦ Φοῖβε, ναοῖς ἀνατίθημι τήνδε σοῖς. 





1 Cf. the singular in Bacch. 929. 

* Homer 14-0, Aeschylus 45-1, Sophocles 20-2, Euripides 23-0. 
5 See page 92. 

*See page 59, and notes 5 and 6. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 119 


νόσοι. 
Compare Aj. 59-60: 
ἐγὼ δὲ φοιτῶντ᾽ ἄνδρα μανιάσιν νόσοις * 
ὥτρυνον (noting the form of the adjective), with verse 66: 
δείξω δὲ καὶ σοὶ τήνδε περιφανῆ νόσον. 
But especially—see page 101 on the uses in OT. 960-962. 


vooTot, 
The plural first arose no doubt as a distributive referring to 
various individuals’. 
Aj. 900: 
ὦμοι ἐμῶν νόστων. 
But the plural occurs only 3 times in Tragedy’. 
Soph. El. 194: 


οἰκτρὰ μὲν νόστοις αὐδά. 


νυμφεῖα. 
Note metrical adaptation in Ant. 1205: 
νυμφεῖον “Ardov κοῖλον εἰσβαίνομεν, 
and Trach. 920: 
[ἔλεξεν]. ὦ λέχη τε καὶ νυμφεῖ᾽ ἐμά“. 
νῶτα. 
Only four illustrative examples are cited—Prom. 429-30: 
yas οὐράνιόν τε πόλον 
νώτοις ὑποστεγάζει. 
Trach. 1047: 
καὶ χερσὶ καὶ νώτοισι μοχθήσας ἐγώ. 
Hec. 1264 : . 
ὑποπτέροις νώτοισιν ἢ ποίῳ τρόπῳ ; 
Tro. 572: 


- > 3 / 4, , 
ποῖ ToT ἀπήνης νώτοισι φέρει; 





1Cf. Eur. Or. 270: εἰ μ᾽ ἐκφοβοῖεν μανιάσιν λυσσήμασιν. 

2 “The plural was familiar in relation tothe return from Troy ; thus the 
poem ascribed to Agias (c. 750 Β. C.) was entitled Nécro’’ (Jebb, note, Soph. 
El. 194). 

8 Occurs Homer 67-0, Aeschylus 4-1, Sophocles 4-2, Euripides 30-0. 

4 Cf. also Trach. 7, Ant. 568. 

5 Homer 9-22, Aeschylus 1-1, Sophocles 2-7, Euripides 8-21. 


120 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


οἶκοι + 

For Tragedy—singular 115, plural 244 times’. The forms of 
the genitive and dative singular, and the forms of the plural 
(Save the lengthened forms of the dative) are not so suitable for 
the trimeter, since they are spondaic: either syllable is barred 
from being the first syllable of an odd foot. Other things being 
equal one would expect the nominative and accusative singular 
to appear far more than the corresponding forms of the plural. 
True it is for the nominative (singular 16, plural 1), but for the 
accusative, not so (singular 83, plural 101). 

It is altogether probable that the dramatists actually pretetred 
the plural of ofkos—just as they preferred the plural of δόμος and 
δῶμα---ἴοτ the plural of οἶκος is less suitable to the trimeter in at 
least the two cases of the singular just mentioned. 


ὄμματα. 

In the Cyclops of Euripides both numbers are freely used for 
the Cyclops eye, e. g. the singular *® in verses 600, 627, the plural ἡ 
in verses 459, 470, 511. 

Verse 600: λαμπρὸν πυρώσας ὄμμ᾽ ἀπαλλάχθηθ᾽ ἅπαξ. 

Verse 459: Κύκλωπος ὄψιν ὄμματ᾽ ἐκτήξω πυρί. 

But in verses 627-8 where either number is equally admissible 
the singular appears : ' 

ἔστ᾽ ἂν ὄμματος 


ὄψις Κύκλωπος ἐξαμιλληθῇ πυρί. 


ὅρμοι (harbor). 
The poetic plural is found merely in two chorat passages. of 
Euripides .* 
IA. 1496-7: 
δι᾿ ἐμὸν ὄνομα τᾶσδ᾽ Αὐλίδος 


στενοπόροισιν ὅρμοις". 





‘Homer 170-5, Aeschylus 14-22, Sophocles 27-22, Euripides 74-190. 
> Cf. figures for δόμος (p. 111) and δῶμα (p. 112). 

5 Cf. ὄφθαλμον, 10. 636. 

* Cf. κόρας, 7b. 611. 

5TA. 1321, IA. 1497. 

5 Cf. Δωρίδος ὅρμον, Hec. 450. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 121 


΄ 6xor '. 

In our field the first poetic plural appears in Sophocles, where 
in each case the plural suggests metrical convenience. 

Soph. Frag. 611: 

ὄχοις ᾿Ακεσσαίοισιν ἐμβεβὼς πόδα (note the consonantal ending ᾿ 
of the noun and the adjective form). 

Soph. El. 727: 

μέτωπα συμπαίουσι Βαρκαίοις ὄχοις. 
The free play of metre on number may be seen in IT. 613 : 
σὺ δ᾽, ὦ τέκνον μοι λεῖπε πωλικοὺς ὄχους, . 
where the fifth foot obviously needs the plural, but compare 
verse 623: 
τέκνον, καθεύδης πωλικῷ δαμεὶς ὄχῳ. 

Electra 965 seems to indicate on Euripides’ part a prejudice 
in favor of the plural, when one considers that with him the 
plural prevails two to one : 

καὶ μὴν ὄχοις γε καὶ στολῇ λαμπρύνεται. 

If the above suggestion is not true, we should surely expect 

ὄχῳ here. 
πάγοι (hill). 
Cf. Or. 1650-2. 
θεοὶ δέ σοι δίκης βραβῆς 

πάγοισιν ἐν ᾿Αρείοισιν εὐσεβεστάτην 

ψῆφον διοίσουσ᾽, ἔνθα νικῆσαί σε χρή, 
with OC. 947-8: 

τοιοῦτον αὐτοῖς "Ἄρεος εὔβουλον πάγον 


ἐγὼ ξυνήδη χθόνιον ὄνθ᾽, ὃς κτὲ. 


πέπλοι. 

There is a marked shift to the plural in Aeschylus and Euri- 
pides, independent of mere metrical considerations. For figures 
and citations see pages 17-18. 

πόρπαι. 

Referring to the suicide of Oedipus, Euripides has the plural 

in Phoen. 62: 


~ 1 Occurs Homer o-1, Aeschylus 4-1, Sophocles 2-2, Euripides 8-17. 
2 Cf. περόναι OT. 1269; Phoen. 805; Bacch. 98 ; and περονίς, Trach. 925. 





122 | The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


χρυσηλάτοις πόρπαισιν αἱμάξας κόρας. 


πρόσωπα. 
Compare for example Soph. El. 1276-7: 
μή μ᾽ ἀποστερήσῃς 
τῶν σῶν προσώπων ἁδονὰν μεθέσθαι, 
and Or. 958: 


πρόσωπον εἰς γῆν σὸν βαλοῦσ᾽ ἄφθογγος εἶ 


ῥηγμῖνες. 
ΤΠ 255: 
ἄκραις ἐπὶ ῥηγμῖσιν ἀξένου πόρου. 

The verse is isolated, the singular impossible without an entire 

reconstruction. 
σκηναί". 

The poetic plural occurs in Sophocles and Euripides. A com- 
parison of the singular uses in Aj. 218, 796, with the plural uses 
in verses 3, 754, 985, makes the explanation of the plural lie in 
metrical convenience. 

Aj. 3: 

καὶ νῦν ἐπὶ σκηναῖς σε ναυτικαῖς 6p® (note the adjective). 

In verse 754 ὑπὸ σκηναῖσι is identical with σκηνῆς ὕπαυλον of verse 
756. Another long form of the dative appears in verse 985— 
παρὰ σκηναῖσιν, and so also in Ion 982 (and elsewhere): 


ε la > - e - ’, 
ἱεραῖσιν ἐν σκηναῖσιν, οὐ θοινᾷ φίλους. 


σκῆπτρα". 

Of the four passages cited from Aeschylus and Euripides on 
page 39, where the plural is for the singular in a purely literal 
sense, the plural forms suggest a convenience of metre. As for 
various other plurals where that number secures a broader mean- 
ing and expresses more fully the poetic feeling, it may be said 
that metre promotes the movement in Enallage none the less. 

The four poetic uses in the literal sense are—Agam. 1265: 


καὶ σκῆπτρα καὶ μαντεῖα περὶ δέρῃ στέφη ; 





' Homer o-o, Aeschylus 0-2, Sophocles 2-3, Euripides 4-10. 
3 Homer 34-2, Aeschylus 2-4, Sophocles 4-5, Euripides 7-19. 


τυ oC lh lr 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 123 


And. 1223-4: 
οὐκέτ᾽ ἔστι μοι πόλις 
σκῆπτρα T ἐρρέτω τάδε. 
Eur. El. 321-2: 
καὶ σκῆτρ᾽ ἐν ots Ἕλλησιν ἐστρατηλάτει, 
(with which compare the alternative— 
καὶ σκῆπτρον ἐν ᾧ Ἕλλησιν ἐστρατηλάτει). 
Here. Fur. 1103-04 : 
ἀλλ᾽ οὔτι Σισύφειον εἰσορῶ πέτρον 
Πλούτωνά τ᾽ οὐδὲ σκῆπτρα Δήμητρος κόρης. 
For other citations pertaining to the fuller meaning of the 
word, and convenient uses of the plural see pages 38-39. 


στέμματα. 

Compare Tragedy’s Homeric precedent : 

A 28: μή νύ τοι οὐ χραίσμῃ σκῆπτρον Kai στέμμα θέοιο, 
but A 14, 273: στέμματ᾽ ἔχων ἐν χερσὶν ἑκηβόλου ᾿Απόλλωνος. 

Accordingly Tragedy has the plural only—ro times'. 

στέρνα ”. 

For all Tragedy, singular 6, plural 41 times. It is a significant 
fact that five of these singulars are accusative, and in each case 
avoid a hiatus *, while the remaining singular is found in a choral 
passage ‘—just where under the circumstances one would expect 
to find it®°. The singular therefore is shunned, the plural is the 
preferred form—it is conventional. 

στέφη“. 
Compare Agam. 1264-65 : 
τί δῆτ᾽ ἐμαυτῆς καταγέλωτ᾽ ἔχω τάδε 


καὶ σκῆπτρα καὶ μαντεῖα περὶ δέρῃ στέφη ; 





1 All in Euripides, ¢..g. Supp. 470 and Or. 12. 

? Homer 14-5, Aeschylus 0-5, Sophocles 2-8, Euripides 4-28. 

$’Trach. 482, Soph. Frag. 196 ; Herc. Fur. 893, 1004, Herc. 563. 

*Eur. Supp. 979. 

δ Witte, (op. cit., p. 213) citing πρὸς στέρνοις of IT. 233, thinks the plural 
imperative here, but the fact that this usage is in Euripides, and is in a cho- 
ral passage, is sufficient to offset any objection. 

δ Homer o-o, Aeschylus 2-3, Sophocles o-1, Euripides 1-9. 


124 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


with Cho. 1035: 
ξὺν τῷδε θαλλῷ καὶ στέφει προσίξομαι. 
In the former case metre would suffer the singular of neither 
σκῆπτρα nor στέφη (note the adjective μαντεῖα). 
στόματα". 
The poetic plural appears in Sophocles and Euripides. 
Trach. 938: 
οὔτ᾽ ἀμφιπίπτων στόμασιν. 


Alc. 402-3: 


“ ε 
καλοῦμαι ὃ 
σὸς ποτὶ σοῖσι πίτνων στόμασιν νεοσσός. 


Both are choral passages. 


τάφοι". 

Soph. El. 443: 

γέρα τάδ᾽ οὗν τάφοισι δέξεσθαι νέκυς. 
OT. 942: 

οὐ δῆτ᾽, ἐπεί νιν θάνατος ἐν τάφοις ἔχει. 
ΘΟ ψετ: 

τῆς σῆς ὑπ᾽ ὀργῆς, σοῖς ὅταν στῶσιν τάφοις, 

and similarly in verse 1410. 

In OT. 987 even, the second syllable of the fourth foot is long 
in οἱ, but 6 would require considerable change in the construction 
of the verse : . 

Kal μὴν μέγας γ᾽ ὀφθαλμὸς οἱ πατρὸς τάφοι. 
τόξα *. 

For all Tragedy: singular 14, plural 66 times. In Sophocles 
the ratio is 5 to 1, and in Euripides 12 to 1 in favor of the plural. 
Of the four singulars in Sophocles‘, three have the form τόξον 
and are used metri gratia ; the lone use of the genitive singular® 


"Homer 25-3, Aeschylus 33-3, Sophocles 24-3, Euripides 40-4. 

? Homer 9-0, Aeschylus 16-2, Sophocles 33-5, Euripides passimin both 
numbers. See page 81. 

* Homer 72-41, Aeschylus 6-6, Sophocles 4-24, Euripides 3-36. 

* Phil. 288, 1128, Trach. 266, Soph. Frag. 875. 

> Trach. 266. 








The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 125 


there however apparently has no explanation. In Euripides the 
singular appears three times‘ in the form τόξον, and serves met- 
rical convenience in each case. It seems clear, then, that the 
plural was the preferred form for Tragedy: a marked advance 
beyond the ratio set by Homeric usage. 
vdara*. 
UT. σι: 
πηγαῖσιν ὑδάτων ἢ θαλασσίᾳ δρόσῳ, : 
where the plural avoids hiatus* and at the same time secures the 
poetic effect of the plural use in English. 
ὑμέναιοι“. 
Compare IA. 624: 
ἔγειρ᾽ ἀδελφῆς ἐφ᾽ ὑμέναιον εὐτυχῶς 
with verse 693 of the same play : 
ὅταν σὺν ὑμεναίοισιν ἐξάγω κόρην. 
φάσγανα. 
Poetic plural only in Euripides. ; 
Of the same weapon are Or. 953: 
ἀλλ᾽ εὐτρέπιζε φάσγαν᾽ ἢ βρόχον δέρῃ, 
and verses 1035-6: 
δεῖ δ᾽ ἢ βρόχους 
ἅπτειν κρεμαστὸυς ἢ ξίφος θήγειν χερί. 
The singular in the former would be impossible without ἃ re- 
construction of the line. 
φόνοι. — 
Note especially the two passages from Sophocles : 
Trach. 558: Νέσσου φθίνοντος ἐκ φόνων ἀνειλόμην. 


El. 11: ὅθεν σε πατρὸς ἐκ φόνων ἐγώ ποτε. 





1 Bacch. 1066, Supp. 745, Frag. 785, 2. 

3 Homer 100-1, Aeschylus 8-0, Sophocles 5-2, Euripides 25-9. 

5 Cf. the lone use of the plural in Homer, the Odyssey—yv 109: ἐν δ᾽ ὕδατ᾽ 
alevdovra, where the cause of the plural was metre no doubt. 

‘In Euripides usually synonymous with γάμοι ; sing. 13, plur. 15 there. 

5 Homer 22-3, Aeschylus 1-0, Sophocles 4-0, Euripides 2-3. 

® Homer 45-1, Aeschylus 31-1, Sophocles 29-6, Euripides 165-6. 


126 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


ὦμοι. 
Compare the plural of Or. 1471-73 ch.: 
ὥμοις ἀριστεροῖσιν ἀνακλάσας δέρην 
παίειν λαιμῶν ἔμελλεν 
ἔσω μέλαν ξίφος, 
with IT. 1381: ὦμον εἰς ἀριστερόν. 
Note in the first citation : (1) The passage ischoral, (2) ὦμοις 
avoids hiatus, (3) ἀριστεροῖσιν is a long dative form. 


CHAPTER H. 





THE PRONOUN. 


'PLURALES SOCIETATIS, MODESTIAE, MAIESTATIS. 


A. Homer. 


As an introduction to the uses of the first person plural pro- 
noun for the singular in Tragedy, it is well to consider the ex- 
tent and force of such uses in Homer. I have noted twelve in- 
stances*. Among them. three uses of the first person plural pro- 
noun for the singular may be recognized, which apparently 
represent the logical development of the plural as meaning one 
person out of the ¢rue plural. Thestepsare: (1) Pluralis Socie- 
tatis, (2) Pluralis Modestiae, (3) Pluralis Maiestatis. We may 
suppose that at first the ἡμεῖς associates in thought others with 
the éy#—the speaker, and that the plural is really κατὰ σύνεσιν ; the 
speaker then with purpose sinks his identity in the class to which 
he belongs*, and the notion of modesty, humility results; as in 
Latin ἡ, so in Greek the Pluralis Maiestatis is an outgrowth of 


1 See Introduction, pp. 1-2, for the disagreement of scholars in the use of 
terms. , 

*Tliad—I 440, N 258, O 224, Φ 60; Odyssey—a το, « 99, \ 562, ν 358, π 45, 
™ 442, τ 345, x 464. 

3 Cf. Gildersleeve, op. cit., p. 27. 

* For the development of the Pluralis Maiestatis, see Sasse (op. cit.). He 
thinks that it was introduced by Gordianus III (238-244 A. D.), appearing 
side by side with the singular. In Constantine I the plural is distinctly 
more common; but as Mommsen shows (Hermes, vol. 17, pp. 530-533), the 
plural there is really our Pluralis Societatis. Ljittré had the right idea when 
he said (s. v. ‘‘nous’’): ‘‘ Usage, qui, je crois, prit naissance chez les em- 
pereurs romains, lorsqu’ils faisaient semblant de prendre conseil du sénat, 
et d’exprimer dans leurs édits une volonté collective.’’ Donatus had al- 
ready called attention to the plural in question as follows: ‘‘Tractum est 
autem a maiestatibus vel potestatibus, quibus familiaris mos est semper in 
edictis suis pluraliter loqgui—‘ Decrevit nostra maiestas’ ’’ (Keil, Supp. Vol., 


128 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


the Pluralis Modestiae, for the latter becomes an instrument of 
superior personages,—‘‘ pride apes humility,” exultant humility 
becomes self-assertive and proud; and now the plural pronoun 
carries with it the notion of dignity as surely as it oftentimes de- 
notes modesty. 


τς 
PLURALIS SOCIETATIS. 


It is not difficult to associate some other person or persons 
with the speaker in the following : 
a τοὺ: τῶν ἁμόθεν ye θεά, θύγατηρ Διός, εἰπὲ Kal ἡμῖν --- 
Begin at any point whatever, O goddess, and relate to us also. To 
ἡμῖν compare μοι (ἔννεπε) in verse I. 
T 439-40 (Paris to Helen) : 
νῦν μὲν yap Μενέλαος ἐνίκησεν σὺν ᾿Αθήνῃ 
κεῖνον δ᾽ αὖτις ἐγώ: παρὰ γὰρ θεοί εἰσι καὶ ἡμῖν---- 
Now hath Menelaos prevailed by Athena’s help, but PU get him 
yet! For there are gods on our side too. 
xk 97-99 (Odysseus) : 
ἔστην δὲ σκοπιὴν és παιπαλόεσσαν ἀνελθών. 
ἔνθα μὲν οὔτ᾽ ἀνδρῶν φαίνετο ἔργα, 
καπνὸν δ᾽ οἷον ὁρῶμεν ἀπὸ χθονὸς αἴσσοντα--- 


p. 203). At the beginning of the fifth century A. D. the Pluralis Maiestatis 
occurs relieved of any idea of association, being the mark of dignified utter- 
ances of the crown, pope, or bishop (Cf Sasse’s Reviewer, Archiv, vol. 6, 
pp: 284 f., 1889). At the end of the fifth century even vos and vester became 
quite common, ‘‘ quand on s’ adressait ἃ un supérieur, comme un pape ἃ un 
empereur, un évéqne 4 un pape ou un empereur, un citoyen quelconque A 
tout représentant de l’autorité civile religieuse’’ (Chatelain, E., ‘‘ Le pluriel 
de respect en latin,’? Revue de Philologie, vol: IV, p. 129, 1880). 

For the classical period Draeger (op. cit., vol. I, p. 25) and others recog- 
nize only the Pluralis Modestiae, which is very common. But Dr. Conway 
has recently argued for 7105 as a plural of ‘‘ Dignity’? or ‘‘ Superiority’”’ in 
Cicero’s Letters: ‘‘ Vos had come to be used by a speaker of himself alone 
when he thought not of the ego he was to his own consciousness, but of the 
person visible or admirable to his neighbors’? (Cambridge Philological 
Transactions, 1899 ; see also Purser’s Review of the’ same in the Classical 
Review, 1900). : 

' This verse is quoted by Plutarch who mentions ἡμῖν as used ἀντὶ τοῦ ἐμοί, 
adding τὸν πληθυντικὸν ἀντὶ τοῦ ἑνικοῦ τίθησιν (De Vita et Poesi Homeri, B 56). 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 129 


7 ascended a rocky cliff and stood where there was no sign of man 
or beast, but we saw only smoke issuing from the earth. 
A 561-2 (Odysseus to Ajax): 

ἀλλ᾽ ἄγε δεῦρο, ἄναξ, ἵν᾽ ἔπος καὶ μῦθον ἀκούσῃς 
ἡμέτερον: δάμασσον δὲ μένος κτέ--- 

Now come hither, oh King, to hear what we have to say; bridle 
thy rage, etc. 

v 356-8 (Odysseus to Nymphs) : 
ov ποτ᾽ ἐγώ γε ὄψεσθ᾽ ὕμμα ἐφάμην: ἀτὰρ καὶ δῶρα 
διδώσομεν ὡς τὸ πάρος περ KTE— 
‘I never expectéd to see you, but we shall continue to make gifts, 
ete. υ 
π44-.45 (Telemachus to Odysseus) : ; 
ἧσο, ξεῖν᾽ - ἡμεῖς δὲ Kai ἄλλοθι δήομεν ἕδρην 
σταθμ. ᾧ ἐν ἡμετέρῳ ' πάρα δ᾽ ἄνηρ ὃς καταθήσει---- 
Sit down stranger ; we shall find a seat somewhere else in our 
Stall ; here’sa man to arrange it. 
x 463-4 (Telemachus) : 
. at δὴ ἐμῇ κεφαλῇ κατ᾽ dveide’ ἔχευαν 
μητέρι θ᾽ ἡμετέρῃ παρά τε μνηστῆρσιν iavov— 

(7 would hang these women and not give an honorable death to 
them) who heaped disgrace upon my head and our mother, and slept 
with the suitors. 

If we are to think of others associated with the speaker in the 
above citations, ἡμῖν (Τ᾿ 440) may include the Trojans; ὁρῶμεν 
(x99) and ἡμέτερον (A562) include the companions ; διδώσομεν 
(ν 358) refers to Telemachus also (see context) ; ἡμεῖς, ἡμετέρῳ 
(744, 45) involve Eumaeus*; ἡμετέρῃ (x 464) suggests her as 
mother of the home. 

The idea of humility ἢ stands out clearly in ἡμῖν (Τ᾽ 440): Paris 
says, “1 shall conquer him ;’’ but then, ‘‘ there are gods with us 
too,’”’ when he speaks of himself in connection with the gods. 








Week sees in ἡμετέρῳ ‘‘ Selbstgefiihl ”’ (ad loc. Homer’s Odyssee, Gotha, 
1886-88 ). 
2So Monro: ‘‘ Telemachus takes care to associate the others, especially 
Eumaeus, in the reception of the stranger and the ownership of the home- 
stead’? (Note ad loc., Homer’s Odyssey, Bks. XIII-X XIV, Oxford, gor). 
3So taken and cited by Gildersleeve, op. cit., p. 27. 


130 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


The same is true of ἡμέτερον (A 562) : Odysseus employs the singu- 
lar through his narrative, but in addressing Ajax he has mod- 
estly distributed the responsibility. 

The quick change from ἐμῇ to ἡμετέρῃ in x 463-464 is signifi- 
cant: the latter apparently denotes dignity, for Telemachus is 
now commander issuing orders, ‘‘. . . . who heaped disgrace up- 
on my head and upon the mother of a man like me.’’ 


“ἢ 
PLURALIS MODESTIAE. 


In the following case, the pluralis of Odysseus alone—r 344-6 : 
οὔδε γυνὴ ποδὸς ἅψεται ἡμετέροιο 
τάων, αἵ τοι δῶμα κάτα δρήστειραι ἔασιν, 
εἰ μή τις γρηῦς ἔστι παλαιὴ κεδνὰ ἰδυῖα. 

Before the recognition Odysseus prays his wife that no luxu- 
ries be prepared for him ; he protests against the servants of the 
palace touching ‘‘ our foot,’’ unless there be some ‘‘ old soul’’ to 
do it; sucha one he would not deny the service of washing ‘‘my 
feet’’ (ποδῶν ἐμεῖο, verse 348). ‘There seems to be in ἡμετέροιο a 
fine touch of modesty (pretended of course)—just such as helps 
him to accomplish his designs. 


3. 
PLURALIS MAIESTATIS. 

It would be difficult to find any one associated with the speaker 

in the four instances following. 

N 257-8 (Meriones to Idomeneus) : 
τό νυ yap (ἔγχος) κατεάξαμεν, ὃ πρὶν ἔχεσκον 
ἀσπίδα Δηιφόβοιο βαλὼν ὑπερηνορέοντος--- 

For we have broken to pieces the spear I had before, striking the 
shield of Deiphobus. 

Gildersleeve cites this passage, taking it apparently as a Plural 
of Modesty’, but Volp’, Draeger*, Gerber‘, Leaf® see in it a 
Pluralis Maiestatis and I think rightly. 

1Op. cit., p. 27. 

2Op. cit., p. 19. 

* Op. cit., p. 26. 


* Op. cit., p. 502. 
5 Leaf, Index (under ‘‘Plural’’), Vol. II, p. 661. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 1321 


O 223-4 (Zeus to Phoebus concerning Poseidon) : 
οἴχεται εἰς ἅλα δῖαν ἀλευάμενος χόλον αἰπὺν 
ἡμέτερον--- 

He has gone into the divine sea, avoiding our wrath. ‘The con- 
text shows that Zeus means only himself. It isa clear-cut case 
of Dignity, as also that of 
® 60-61 (Achilles) : 

ἀλλ᾽ ἄγε δὴ καὶ δουρὸς ἀκωκῆς ἡμετέροιο 
γεύσεται--- 

Surely he shall taste of the point of our spear. 

Similarly 7 437-442 (Eurymachus) : 

οὐκ ἔσθ᾽ οὗτος. . . . ζώοντός γ᾽ ἐμέθεν... 
αἶψά οἱ αἷμα κελαινὸν ἐρωήσει περὶ δουρὶ 
ἡμετέρῳ--- 

There is, nor will be, a man to do violence to thy son Telemachus, 
while 7 am alive and see the light. That ts my word and verily it 
shall be fulfilled ; his black blood shall stream forthwith about our 
spear. 

Monro’ is particularly insistent that the plural as a 


ce 


variety 
for the singular is not Homeric’’ and ‘‘ The plural is used to 
seem to associate others with the speaker.’’ With him the 
plural is always one of Association and never Modesty or Dignity. 
But in such instances as Ὁ 224 and ®60 the plural can hardly 
mean more than one. It may serve to call attention to the con- 
dition or rank of the speaker, whether the same be humble or 
exalted. 

In certain of the passages cited above the plural appears in 
close connection with the singular—the change seems abrupt : 
κατεάξαμεν. . . . ἔχεσκον (N 258) ; ἔστην... . . δρῶμεν (κο97-99) ; 
ἐγὼ. ... διδώσομεν. 

‘The provocation for the plural in the last two at least seems 
hard to find and there is warrant for suspicion that metre en- 
couraged the Enallage, just as we may be sure it does at times 
in Tragedy. Compare such variations as occur in zodés..... 
ἡμετέροιο (τ 344) and ποδῶν ἐμεῖο (τ 348). 


1See notes on 7 44 f. and π 442. 


132 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


B. 
Tragedy.' 
I. AESCHYLUS. 


The three plurals in question are rare in Aeschylus. Even 
the Pluralis Societatis, where ἡμεῖς is ἐγώ in particular, is not 
common. 

(a) PLURALIS SOCIETATIS. 


In Agam. 844-852, βουλευσόμεσθα...... mepacoperOa . 2... 
δεξιώσομαι, AQamemnon seems to include the chorus in affairs of 
state (note the participles θέντες, xéavres), but in speaking of his 
personal act he employs the singular. 

The following are colorless of any notion of majesty or mod- 
esty, except perhaps Agam. 1058. 

Agam. 1279 (Cassandra to Chorus) ; 

ov μὴν ἄτιμοί γ᾽ ἐκ θεῶν τεθνήξομεν 
(1. e. including Agamemnon as the context shows). 

Cho. 201-03: : 

ἀλλ᾽ εἰδότας μὲν τοὺς θεοὺς καλούμεθα 
οἵοισιν ἐν χειμῶσι ναυτίλων δίκην 
orpoBovped (a )— 

We call upon the gods, though they know etc.,—(a wetieratice 
statement ). 

The following is colloquial and natural—Cho. 176 (Electra to 
Chorus) : 

αὐτοῖσιν ἡμῖν κάρτα προσφερὴς ideiv— 

This lock of hair is very similar to ours, 1. 6., that of our family, 
but one would have expected αὐτῇ ἐμοί". 

In Agam. 1058 Clytemnestra generalizes with fine dramatic 
effect in ἐλπίσασι : 





‘The plural pronoun for the singular is frequent in Isocrates, e. g. V, 105 
(to Philip) : viv δὲ φοβοῦμαι μή τινες ἐπιτιμήσωσιν ἡμῖν, εἰ... .. νῦν τολμῴην σοὶ 
παραινεῖν κτὲ. Similarly the plural is used in Xenophon Cyr. I, 1, and else- 
where in prose. But Tragedy is the field of its flourishing. 

*(a) If atrue plural, a distinctness in the hair of the members of the 
family must be assumed, as contrasted with that of others; (b) CK ἐμοῦ, ib. 
172; (c) Metre is probably effective here, for the line is isolated and the 
long dative form αὐτοῖσιν is particularly convenient. 


The Poetic Plural.of Greek Tragedy. 133 


ὡς οὔποτ᾽ (ἡμῖν) ἐλπίσασι τήνδ᾽ ἕξειν χάριν--- 
7 had never hoped to have the pleasure. Clytemnestra associates 
᾿ others with herself purposely and then too there may be in the 
plural a sarcastic tinge of affected modesty. 
To draw the line issometimes difficult but the pronouns in the 
citations under the two heads following appear to involve but 
one person. 


(Ὁ) PIWRALIS MODESTIAE. 


Cho. 428 : 
κροτητὸν dpov' καὶ πανάθλιον κάρα. 
_ Cho. 437-38 (Orestes) : 
ἕκατι δ᾽ ἁμᾶν xepav" 
ἔπειτ᾽ ἐγὼ νοσφίσας ὀλοίμαν--- 
(She shall atone... .), so far as depends upon my hands; and 
then may 7 ete. 
Eum. 451-53 (Orestes to Athena) : 
πάλαι πρὸς ἄλλοις ταῦτ᾽ ἀφιερώμεθα 
οἴκοισι καὶ βατοῖσι καὶ ῥυτοῖς πόροις --- 
Long since have I purged myself at other homes etc.— 


(c) PLURALIS MAIESTATIS. 


Cho. 672-73 (Clytemnestra to Orestes) : 
εἰ ἄλλο πρᾶξαι δεῖ τι βουλιώτερον 
ἀνδρῶν τόδ᾽ ἐστὶν ἔργον, οἷς κοινώσομεν---- 
and similarly in verses 716--17: 
ἡμεῖς δὲ ταῦτα τοῖς spite δωμάτων 
κοινώσομεν--- 


7 shall confer with the aitomiies 25%, εὐ aeaed ). 





1 “1 Blass chai that duds is ‘iidt apts, though “ ‘*von einer redenden Persott ge- 
braucht’’ (Choephoren, p. 128, Halle, 1906). Cf Kiihner 1", p. 602 and 
Dindorf 5. v.; also Gildersleeve, note to Pindar P. IV, 27, and ib. III, 41, 
where the same plural for singular occurs ; the plural in these instances of 
Pindar may, however, have the idea of Dignity. It might be urged of course 
that ἁμόν in our passage refers to the whole chorus and that κάρα is used 
collectively. 


* Note the dramatic power in the studied obscurity of Clytemnestra’s 
words. Orestes is no less wise than she in τοῖς κυρίοισι, verse 689. 


134 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Eumenides 767-68 (Orestes to Athena) : 

αὐτοὶ yap ἡμεῖς ὄντες ἐν τάφοις τότε 
τοῖς τἀμὰ παρβαίνουσι νῦν ὁρκώματα. 

For I, then in the grave, will punish them that break the oath I 
now make. 

The ἡμεῖς may be Orestes only, asserting his supernatural 
power as a spirit in contrast with his human strength (note 
ἐμά") 

Persae 849-51: εἶμι... .. πειράσομαι" 


οὐ γὰρ τὰ φίλτατ᾽ " ἐν κακοῖς προδώσομεν. 


2. SOPHOCLES. 


Sophocles uses these plurals much more freely than Aeschylus. 
Merely representative examples are cited from Sophocles (and 
Euripides), as completeness is not justifiable in the present limits. 


(a) PLURALIS SOCIETATIS. 


Phil. 91-92 (Neoptolemus) : 
ov yap ἐξ ἑνὸς ποδὸς 
ἡμᾶς * τοσούσδε πρὸς βίαν χειρώσετα----- 

For he will not overcome us, so many as weare, when he has use 
of but one foot. 

Similar instances are frequent. Volp* points out rightly that 
messengers especially employ the pluralin Sophocles ; and thinks 
this plural may have been common in daily Attic speech without 
any particular notion of modesty or majesty. But the latter 
statement of his is but a mere surmise and is without evidence. 
In Aeschylus the messenger never speaks of himself alone in the 
plural, though such is quite common in Euripides as well as 
Sophocles. 








1See under τάφοι, Ὁ. 81. 
31 6, τὸν φίλτατον (Xerxes). See Chap. III, 3, Ὁ. 


3 Volp makes ἡμᾶς here a Pluralis Maiestatis, but it clearly includes the 
chorus of seamen. 


* Op. cit., p. 22. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 135 


(b) PLURALIS MODESTIAE. 

Trach. 630-32 ( Deianira) : 

δέδοικα yap 
μὴ πρῷ λέγοις ἂν τὸν πόθον Tov ἐξ ἐμοῦ, 
πρὶν εἰδέναι τἀκεῖθεν εἰ ποθούμεθα---- 

7 fear it would be anticipating, to mentionmy own longing be- 
fore learning whether [ am longed for there. 

Deianira clearly hides her identity in the plural, and its force 
is obviously in the direction of modesty ; the abrupt change 
after δέδοικα and ἐμοῦ seems only to emphasize this point. 

Electra 399 : 

πεσούμεθ᾽, εἰ χρή, πατρὶ τιμωρούμενοι, 
where Electra speaking of herself uses the masculine plural '. 
Aj. 1400-01 (Odysseus) : 
ἀλλ᾽ ἤθελον μέν" εἰ δὲ μή ᾽στί σοι φίλον 
πράσσειν Tad ἡμᾶς, εἶμ᾽, ἐπαινέσας τὸ σόν--- 

That was my desire, but if thou dost not care for us to assist in 
this, it suits me, 7 γε off ! 

The ἡμᾶς here is an echo of a similar use of the same word two 
verses above where Teucer speaks— 

Ajax 1398-99 : ov be 

ἀνὴρ καθ᾽ ἡμᾶς ἐσθλὸς ὧν ἐπίστασο--- 
Do thou rest assured that thou hast been a true friend to us. 
In OT. 1419 the spirit of Oedipus is broken when he says : 
οἴ μοι τί δῆτα λέξομεν πρὸς τόνδ᾽ ἔπος ; 
OC. 347 (Oedipus to Ismene) : 
ἀεὶ μεθ᾽ ἡμῶν δύσμορος πλανωμένη. 
Aj. 666-67 (Ajax) : 
τοιγὰρ τὸ λοιπὸν εἰσόμεσθα μὲν θεοῖς 
εἴκειν μαθησόμεσθα δ᾽ ᾿Ατρεΐδας σέβειν 
“1imilarly Antigone in Ant. 926, Alcestis in Alc. 383, Medeain Med. 314f., 
and Deianira, Trach. 491 ἢ. Volp thinks Electra includes Orestes in the 
above verse, showing that the masculine cannot include Chrysothemis or the 
chorus (the feminine participle would be used). It is, however, simply a 
Pluralis Modestiae. Whenever a woman refers to herself by the plural, the 
masculine is always used in Tragedy, for the masculine is generic cf, 
(Gildersleeve, op. cit., p. 27). 





136 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


and similarly in verse 823: 
οὕτω μὲν εὐσκευοῦμεν. 
Aj. 737-9 (Messenger) : ἰοὺ ἰού’ 
βραδεῖαν ἡμᾶς ap ὃ τήνδε τὴν ὁδὸν 
πέμπων ἔπεμψεν ἢ ᾿φάνην ἐγὼ βραδύς. 
El. 772 (Paedagogus) : 
μάτην ap ἡμεῖς, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἥκομεν. 
(c) PLURALIS ΜΑΙΕΒΤΑΤΙΘ. 


Ant. 634 (Creon to Haemon) : 
ἢ σοὶ μὲν ἡμεῖς πανταχῇ δρῶντες φίλοι"; 
Or are we still thy friends, however we may act? ‘That is—am 
7 still thy father, however I may act ? 
Aj. 774-75 (Ajax boastingly) : 
ἄνασσα, τοῖς ἄλλοισιν ᾿Αργείων πέλας 
ἵστω, καθ᾽ ἡμᾶς δ᾽ οὔποτ᾽ ἐκρήξει μάχη--- 
Queen Athene, take thy stand with the rest of the Greeks ; where 
Lam ete. 
Aj. 1139 (Teucer to Menelaus) : 
οὐ μᾶλλον, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἢ λυπήσομεν. 
ΑἹ. 1261" (Agamemnon to Teucer) : 
ὅστις πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἀντὶ σοῦ λέξει τὰ σά ; 
( Wilt thou bring some freeborn man) to plead thy case for thee 
before me ? 
The ἡμᾶς directs attention to Agamemnon’s exalted position, 
while the singular very naturally appears in verses 1262 (μάθοιμ᾽ 
ἐγώ), and 1263: 


τὴν βάρβαρον yap γλῶσσαν οὐκ ἐπαΐω. 





‘Volp thinks the Pluralis Maiestatis is found in the second person plural 

pronoun of OT. 989 ( Messenger to Oedipus) : 
ποίας δὲ καὶ γυναικὸς ἐκφοβεῖσθ᾽ ὕπερ, 

and in same play verse 991 (ὑμῖν). But such an ideain the second person 
plural can hardly be paralleled elsewhere in Tragedy ; the change of num- 
ber in connection with the vocative, however, is found e.g. in Homer 
(#82), Phil. 369, OC. 1104. Admittedly the context does make it difficult 
to include Iocaste with Oedipus in the plurals of OT. 989, 991. 

7See Chap. III, 3, Ὁ, for φίλοι in‘ singular meaning. : 

*The plural pronoun as used by Agamemnon elsewhere in this play in- 
cludes Menelaus, but it is best taken as singular in meaning in this verse 
and verse 1320. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 137 


Similarly the plural in Aj. 1320-21 (Agamemnon) : 
οὐ yap κλύοντές ἐσμεν αἰσχίστους λόγους 
ἄναξ ᾿Οδυσσεῦ, τοῦδ᾽ ὑπ᾽ ἀνδρὸς ἀρτίως ; 
Ant. 726-27 ( Creon to Haemon) : 
οἱ τηλικοίδε καὶ διδαξόμεσθα δὴ 
φρονεῖν ὑπ᾽ ἀνδρὸς τηλικοῦδε τὴν φύσιν :--- 
Ts a man of my age actually to take lessons from a youth ? 
Similarly OT. 435-36 (Tiresias to Oedipus) : 
ἡμεῖς τοιοίδ᾽ ἔφυμεν, ὡς μὲν σοὶ δοκεῖ, 
μῶροι, γονεῦσι δ᾽ οἵ σ᾽ ἔφυσαν, ἔμφρονες. 


3. EURIPIDES. 


It will suffice to mention some of the more striking uses ane the 

Pluralis Modestiae and Pluralis Maiestatis. 
(a) PLURALIS MODESTIAE. 

IA. 1215' (Iphigenia in supplicating her father) : 

ταῦτα yap δυναίμεθ᾽ ἄν. 

IT. 368 (Iphigenia quoting former words to father) : 

ἡμεῖς δ᾽ ὀλλύμεσθα πρὸς σέθεν. 

IT.” 605 (Orestes of himself alone) : 

ἡμᾶς δ᾽ ὁ χρήζων κτεινέτω. 

In El. 555 there is a striking use of the plural, in which one 
may discern a touch of art (Electra speaks to Orestes whom she 
has not yet recognized) : 

οὗτος τὸν dpuov® πατέρ᾽ ἔθρεψεν, ὦ ξένε 
(2. e. our father). 
(b) PLURALIS MAIESTATIS. 

IT. 1172 (King Thoas) : 

τίν᾽ eis ἔρον yap τοῦ μαθεῖν πεπτώκαμεν. 
IT. 1432-3 (King Thoas) : 
γυναῖκας αὖθις, ἡνίκ᾽ ἂν σχολὴν λάβω, 


ποινασόμεσθα. 





1In IT. 62 she uses the same words to Orestes. 

?Similarly Pylades refers to himself ib. 674. See also ib. 690 (Orestes), 
ib. 711 (Orestes), ib. 785 (Iphigenia), ib. 933 ὥφθημεν ἄθλιοι (Orestes). 

3 See footnote, 1, p. 133. 


138 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


IT. 1444 (Athena) : 
πρὸς μέν σ᾽ ὅδ᾽ ἡμῖν μῦθος. 
Hec. 758 (Agamemnon to Hecuba) : 
καὶ δὴ τίν᾽ ἡμᾶς εἰς ἐπάρκεσιν καλεῖς. 
4. ENALLAGE OF NUMBER—IN GENERAL. 
(a) THE CHORUS. 


It seems impossible to trace out any rule or plan governing 
Enallage in the Choral parts. Infact a mere caprice of thought, 
or the convenience of metre, seems to be the true explanation in 
a large number of instances. It is natural for the Coryphaeus 
to employ either number, for being the spokesman either number 
used by him would in general include the whole chorus. Com- 
pare for example Aeschylus Choephori 931 (στένω) with verse 
933 (αἱρούμεθαγ, where the Coryphaeus uses the iambic trimeter. 

In Sophocles Ajax 136-165 the singular appears three times 
(ἐπιχαίρω, ἔχω, πεφόβημαι), the plural twice (ἡμᾶς, στένομεν) ; here 
too the Coryphaeus is acting. 

The Coryphaeus surely obligates the whole chorus in Euripides 
Hipp. 713-14: 

ὄμνυμι σεμνὴν Αρτεμιν Διὸς κόρην 
μηδὲν κακῶν σῶν εἰς φάος δείξειν ποτέ. 
Other shifts in number are in Aj. 1218-21: éym....... 
ἐλεύσσομεν, and the same play, verses 804-05 : 
τοιοῦτον ἴσμεν ἄρτι yap κἀγὼ δόμοις, 
Θησεῦ, πάρειμι σῶν κακῶν πενθήτρια, 

and Soph. El. 1230-31: 
ὁρῶμεν, ὦ παῖ, κἀπὶ συμφοραῖσί por! 
γεγηθὸς ἕρπει δακρύον ὀμμάτων ἄπο. 

When the chorus is addressed the same freedom of change is 
noted, as in Agam. 1184 where Clytemnestra says μαρτυρεῖτε, but 
in verse 1196, ἐκμαρτύρησον ; the singular shows a direction of at- 





'The abrupt change to μοί forcefully indicates the individual act not only 
of the Coryphaeus but each member of the chorus. We may suppose that 
each one wept, following the leader: just as it may be assumed that the 
chorus followed him by some act or gesture whenever they could thus second 
his sentiment. 


—————==—— eC CC CC 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 139 


tention to the Coryphaeus. Similarly Eum. 180-1, ἀπαλλάσσεσθε 
ied pre's λαβοῦσα, and Ion 750-1, myvioere... . . . βαλείς. 
So also both numbers often appear close together in a choral 
part as, for example, in Aesch. Supp. 777-79: 
τί πεισόμεσθα ; ποῖ φύγωμεν Arias 
χθονός, κελαινὸν εἴ τι κεῦθός ἐστί που ; 
μέλας γενοίμαν καπνός (and in verse 782---ὅροίμαν), 
and IT. 1494-96: 
δράσομεν. ... .. δέδεγμαι. 
It is useless therefore to try to locate definitely Plurals of 
Modesty or Majesty in such passages as those above cited. 


(b) THE TRIMETER. 


In the course of one actor’s remarks the plural and singular 
often appear in close connection. The change is often xara 
σύνεσιν, and the construction loose, but not unnatural. Such is 
the case in Eum. 141-42': 

εὕδεις ; ἀνίστω κἀπολακτίσασ᾽ ὕπνον 
ἰδώμεθ᾽ εἴ τι τοῦδε φροιμίου ματᾷ. 

It would seem difficult to ascribe any reason other than caprice, 
or convenience of metre, for such changes—in close proximity— 
as in (4. g.) Phil. 1393-4: 

τί δῆτ᾽ ἂν ἡμεῖς δρῶμεν, εἴ σε γ᾽ ἐν λόγοις 
πείσειν δυνησόμεσθα μηδὲν ὧν λέγω ; 

Herc. Fur. 858 : 

Ἥλιον μαρτυρόμεσθα δρῶσ᾽ ἃ δρᾶν οὐ βούλομαι, 

Ion 291: 

κωλυόμεσθα μὴ μαθεῖν ἃ βούλομαι. 

Even though in each citation the verbs refer to the same in- 
dividual, nevertheless if a touch of modesty should be assumed in 
the plurals the abrupt changes would have a real dramatic value. 

An interesting passage in this connection is IT. 342-368 : 


ques... . . φροντιούμεθα. .. .. ἠγριώμεθα..... δοκοῦσ (α).... 
Meee, noOopnv. .... ἈΝ ἀντετιμωρησάμην... .. μ (ε) 

. ἀμνημονῶ. . . . νυμφεύομαι.... ἐμὲ... .. ἡμεῖς δ᾽ ὀλλύμεσθα 
πρὸς σέθεν 





1So Aristophanes Aves 203: éuBas...... καλοῦμεν. 





140 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Other instances similar to the above are in Jon 1250-1 : 


SiwxdperOa . . . . κρατηθεῖσ (a)... .. γίγνομαι, 
and IA. 1025-6 (Clytemnestra) : : 
πράσσωμεν. ..... 5 Tose eee ὀψόμεσθα..... μ᾿ ἀθλίαν. 


Again, note Ant. 734 (Creon) : 
πόλις yap ἡμῖν aye χρὴ τάσσειν ἐρεῖ ; 
Shall the city prescribe to me—the King—what orders I should 
give? 
The ἡμῖν is not a mere arbitrary change here: it suggests 
Creon’s office. 
But compare the three following passages from Euripides, 
where any distinction is hard to see— 
IA. 516 (Agamemnon to Menelaus): 
"λάθοιμι τοῦτ᾽ ἄν: ἀλλ᾽ ἐκεῖν᾽ οὐ λήσομεν--- 
7 might send her back to Argos unnoticed, but there’s something 
else in which we will not escape detection. 
IT. 994-5 (Iphigenia to Orestes) : 
σφαγῆς τε yap σῆς χεῖρ᾽ ἀπαλλάξαιμεν ἂν 
σ. ὥσαιμι δ᾽ οἴκους. 
IT. 80-81 : ἠλαυνόμεσθα..... ἐξέπλησα. 
Compare IT. 790 (Pylades) : 
τὸν δ᾽ ὅρκον ὃν κατώμοσ᾽ ἐμπεδώσομεν, 
where Pylades may be conceived of as expressing his proud 
glee over the situation with ἐμπεδώσομεν, which is the 7] well ratify 


of a ruler. 


ἜΣΣΕΑΙ ΡΤ ΝΕ ΠῚ 





NOUNS REFERRING TO PERSONS. 





A. Homer and Pindar. 


In Homer the material is scanty, and indeed what is found is 
related to but few of the uses in Tragedy. 

T 49: ἐξ ἀπίης γαίης, νυὸν ἀνδρῶν αἰχμητάων--- 

(Helen) from a distant land, daughter-in-law of warlike men. 

The generalization makes Helen the daughter-in-law of the 
Greeks as a nation. There is added force in that the verse is 
spondaic. Tothisexample may be added A 128, where the 
plural pronoun is used for the sake of indefiniteness : 

ἐκ γάρ σφεας χειρῶν φύγον ἡνία σιγαλόεντα--- 

For the smooth reins had slipped out of their hands. ‘The pro- 
noun refers to but one person'. Homer conceals the unimpor- 
tant detail as to who was driving by the convenient plural. 

In each of the two passages following the plural alludes to but 
one individual— 
® 184-5: κεῖσ᾽ οὕτω χαλεπόν τοι ἐρισθενέος Κρονίωνος 

παισὶν ἐριζέμεναι, ποταμοῖό περ ἐκγεγαῶτι---- 

Lie thus ; τέ ἐς hard for thee to contend with an offspring of 
Cronion, though thou art sprung from a river-god. 
® 498-9: Λητοῖ ἐγὼ δέ τοι οὔ τι μαχήσομαι: ἀργαλέον δὲ 

πληκτίζεσθ᾽ ἀλόχοισι Διὸς νεφεληγερέταο--- 

Leto I shall not fight with thee αὐ αἰ, itisa grievous thing to 
exchange blows with a wife of Zeus. 

The plural envelops the person in a class, thus bringing out in 
clear relief the notion of relationship at the expense of indivi- 
duality. As will be seen later such uses are of frequent occur- 
rence in Tragedy. 

In Pindar are found a few instances of the plural when the al- 
lusion is to but one individual*: Fragmentum 75, 12, πατέρων 
(Zeus); Fragmentum 13, γυναικῶν (Semele) ; Olympian VII, το, 





1Cf. Monro and Leaf, note ad loc. 
* Edition—Bergk, Poetae Lyrici Graeci, Leipsic, 1878. 


142 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


νικώντεσσιν (Diagoras) ; Isthmian VIII, 38, ἀδελφεοῖσιν ( Poseidon) ; 
Isthmian V, 43', τίνες (Achilles); Pythian IX, 105, προγόνων 
(Alexidamus). 

B. Tragedy. 


Here it is that the plural—not only that of Chapters I and II 
—but the so-called J/ndefinite, Generalizing, Allusive’ Plural 
reaches its widest variety and greatest frequency. In fact the 
plural now in question has a place in the very definition of the 
language of Greek Tragedy : for Greek Tragedy was naturally 
the soil most conducive to its highest and most useful develop- 
ment. This statement is especially true as regards the plural, 
when Allusive’. 

An allusion may be made to a single person in a gnomic gen- 
' eralized statement ; the plural merely places the individual in a 
class and thus minuteness is avoided. Even proper names are 
pluralized, thus forming a cass’. : 

Examples of the gnomic statements referred to are the fol- 
lowing— 

Cho. 920 (Clytemnestra): 

ἄλγος γυναιξὶν ἀνδρὸς εἴργεσθαι, τέκνον---- 
A woman (1. 6. I myself) misses her husband awfully, child. 
Agam. 1668 (Aegisthus): 
old ἐγὼ φεύγοντας ἄνδρας ἐλπίδας ovrovpevovs— 
7 know that exiles (1. e. Orestes) feed on hopes. 
Agam. 941 (Clytemnestra): 
τοῖς δ᾽ ὀλβίοις ye καὶ τὸ νικᾶσθαι πρέπει--- 

It is becoming for a victor (1. e. thee Agamemnon) 20 suffer de- 

Seat too, 7 








λέγε. ᾿ς τίνες “Ἕκτορα πέφνον. 
2 See Introduction, p. 2. 


* Similar to the citation from the pseudo-Longinus (see p.4) are Agam, 
1439 (Clytemnestra) : 
Χρυσηΐδων μείλιγμα τῶν ὑπ᾽ ᾿Ἰλίῳ (i. 6. folks of the Chrysets sort), 
Rhes. 866: 
οὐκ δἶδα τοὺς σοὺς ods λέγεις Odvocéas. 
Cf. Plautus, Curculio 546: 
Quos Summanos somnias? What Summanuses are you talking about ? 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 143 


In each case! the plural directs attention to the class and away 
from the individual, though as often the one person alluded to is 
perfectly clear. This, however, is common in both prose and 
poetry of various languages’. 

But other uses are not uncommon in Tragedy. One parent 
may be referred to in the plural, or one child may be so desig- 
nated ; the plural may serve the purpose of caution or reserve ; 
it becomes the means of respectful reference to one in authority ; 
it may avoid a specific charge against a murderer; it may refer 
to a deceased person in a general and thus reverent way. The 
vagueness of oracular, and the generality of legal, phraseology 
appear in Tragedy—to serve dramatic purpose, to heighten sus- 
pense, to retard the action of the plot. 


I. THE ALLUSIVE PLURAL OF RESPECT’*. 


Before coming to nouns pertaining to persons, it may be noted 
that the plural is sometimes used in an allusion to one god. 


Prom. 659-60 * 
τί χρὴ 
δρῶντ᾽ ἢ λέγοντα δαίμοσιν πράσσειν φίλα, 
where δαίμοσιν" alludes to Zeus particularly, if not only ; ἴον. to 
him alone is there any © occasion πράσσειν φίλα. 





180 also Prom. 225. 
Ξ3Τὸ be distinguished is sucha use οὗ the plural as ¢. ρ΄. that of Cho. 336-37: 
τάφος δ᾽ ἱκέτας (7. δ. me, Electra) δέδεκται 
φυγάδας (7. ε. Orestes) θ᾽ ὁμοίως, 
where the plural emphasizes the state of each, etc., but can refer in each 
case to merely the one individual. C/ the Scholiast: ‘‘ixerhy μὲν ἐμέ, 
φυγάδα δὲ ᾿Ορέστην."" 

’ The three divisions here made of the Allusive Plural—Respect, Relation- 
ship, Reserve—are of course somewhat arbitrary ; the distinction cannot be 
sharp ¢. g. between οἱ xolpavo (Respect) and oi κατὰ γῆς (Reserve), for both 
ideas are present. 

*Cf. ib. 149: νέοι yap οἱακονόμοι pean ᾽Ολύμπου, 7. €. Zeus. So the scho- 
liast : ‘‘dpxovres, ἤτοι ὁ Ζεύς. The context here, however, does not argue 
for respect on the part of the chorus; norforcaution, as the following verse 
shows (Ζεὺς ἀθέτως κρατύνει). The plural is not specific; it serves as a rhe- 
torical step towards the direct charge just quoted. 

5 The scholiast merely : ‘‘ rots δαίμοσιν = τοῖς θεοῖς." Cf. Vergil’s Aeneid I, 
4, Visuperum (7. ¢. Juno), and ib. VI, 322, Anchisa generata, deum (7. 6. 
Venus) certissima proles. 





144 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


In Ion 132 (θεοῖσιν) Phoebus is meant as also in verse 183 
(τούς βόσκοντας). 

Eum. 435 deserves special mention here (Chorus to Athene) : 

πῶς δ᾽ οὔ; σέβουσαί γ᾽ ἀξίαν κἀπ᾽ ἀξίων". 

Wecklein’s ingenious emendation—érdéua—is unnecessary, and 
disregards the correct observation of the scholiast: ἀξίων οὖσαν 
γονέων. 

Paley ’ is doubtless right in his supposition that the error of 
the mss. arose from the idea that κἀπ᾽ ἀξίων meant καὶ ἐπαξίων. 
Just twenty lines before, Athene is addressed by the Furies as 
Διὸς κόρη. They seem to be bearing especially in mind her rela- 
tion to him. So too in Sept. 127 she is addressed as Avoyevés 
κράτος. Compare especially Ion 735, where Athene is referred to 
by the same words as here and where the plural has a similar 
reference to Zeus: 

ὦ θύγατερ, ἄξι᾽ ἀξίων γεννητόρων. 

The House of Atreus, including the whole line, is ᾿Ατρεῖδαι. 
But in Tragedy the plural is often employed with particular al- 
lusion to one person as, for example, in Agam. 3, 310. In Soph. 
El. 1068 ᾿Ατρείδαις means Agamemnon and him only. Similarly 
only Laius is meant in Sophocles OT. 495-6: 

Λαβδακιδαις 
ἐπίκουρος ἀδήλων θανάτων. 

Just so, other nouns appear in the plural referring to one per- 
son in authority. It may be that δεσπόται sometimes includes 
both king and queen * as perhaps in Agam. 1042-43 where Cly- 
temnestra says to Cassandra: 

εἰ δ᾽ οὖν ἀνάγκη τῆσδ᾽ ἐπιρρέποι τύχης, 
ἀρχαιοπλούτων δεσποτῶν πολλὴ χάρις--- 

At any rate should such a hard lot oppress one, great ἐς the ad- 
vantage of having a master of established opulence. But even here 
it is unnecessary to look for plurality ; the plural is best taken 








17 ἐπαξίων (M and G) ; 7’ én’ ἀξίων (V). 
2 Note, ad loc. 


*The Greeks of today speak of the King and Queen as οἱ βασιλεῖ. Cf 
Plautus, Amphitruo 960 for a use of 671 referring to husband and wife. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. aS 


as alluding merely to Agamemnon—as being a (pretendedly) re- 
spectful reference to him. 
The following may be classified as Allusive Plurals of Respect : 














peter ἡ Ὁ Aeschylus. ile ; Sophocles | Euripides 2 

of deowéean (ABM. 3 10453 aus ents ae 
312, 751,755; Med. 

οἱ κύριοι " Cho. 658, 689 Ajax 734 laine 

οἱ κοίρανοι Agam. 549. ᾿ Alc. 216 

οἱ ἀρχηγέται == Supp. 184 

οἱ κρατοῦντες ‘Cho. 716 OT. 530 ΤῸ 1301. Frag. 604 

οἱ τύραννοι Ant. 60; OT. 1096 es δ Ion 236; 

οἱ ἐν τέλει ΝΑῚ Ant. 67 | 

οἱ ἄνακτες OC. 295 

οἱ πρόμοι OC. 884 

οἱ ταγοί ‘Ant, 1057 

ob δ μοῦχοι OC. 1087 | 

οἱ προπέμψαντες. or. 1667 

οἱ βασιλεῖς | Se Herac. 294; 

οἱ ἄρχοντες | | Ion 1070 











The uses known in Tragedy are doubtless an outgrowth of a 
very familiar law, which Euripides refers to in Frag. 337, 2: 
σέβειν δὲ τοὺς κρατοῦντας * ἀρχαῖος νόμος. 
The same idea is contained in the maxim of Eur. Frag. 604: 
πρὸς κέντρα μὴ λάκτιζε τοῖς κρατοῦσί σου. 





1 The ms. reading is δεσπόταν, but we should read δεσποτᾶν, most probably. 

2 Cf. Antiphon Tetr. A, δ, §7, μέλλων μαρτυρεῖν οὗτός τε (ὁ θεράπων) θαυμαστὸν 
ἔπαθεν ὑπὸ τῶν κυρίων ἔχθρων μοι ὄντων πεισθεὶς καταψεύδεσθαί μου. 

5 Cf. Paul’s ‘‘ powers that be,’’ Romans 13, I. 


146 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Each of the plurals above listed alludes to some particular in- 
dividual, and in a number of instances the plural cannot even 
suggest more than one person. A survey of all the examples 
leads to three observations : (1) The plural is used merely to re- 
fer to some authority not definitely known or to avoid persona- 
ting some authority in question. 

IA. 304 (Menelaus to Slave) : 

ἄπελθε λίαν δεσπόταισι πιστὸς εἷ--- 
Away! Thou art too loyal ἐο thy master (Agamemnon only). 
Aesch. Supp. 184 (Danaus) : 

τάχ᾽ ἂν πρὸς ἡμᾶς τῆσδε γῆς apxnyérar’ κτέ--- 

Perhaps the ruler of this land (whoever he is) zs coming to spy 
us out, 

Similarly Hel. 551-2 ( Helen) : 

καὶ μ᾽ ἑλὼν θέλει 
δοῦναι τυράννοις ὧν ἐφεύγομεν yapous— 

He wants to take me and give me to his master pihose marriage 
7 am avoiding. 

Ion 1070 (Chorus) : 

ἄρχοντας ἀλλοδαπούς--- 

A foreign ruler, that is 7021, a similar ideais expressed by the 
contemptuous avoidance of the name in verse 1058: 

ἄλλος ἄλλων ἀπ᾽ οἴκων. 

(2) The plural calls attention to the office rather than the in- 
dividual, at the same time exalting the office, as in Ion 750-51 
where Creusa refers to herself in addressing the chorus: 

εἰ yap ἀγαθά μοι μηνύσετε 
οὐκ εἰς ἀπίστους δεσπότας βαλεῖς χάριν--- 

For if you will give me good news, you will favor a mistress who 
will prove true. 

Similarly Medea refers to herself as δεσπόταις in Med. 823 (δὰ: 
dressing the Chorus). : 

Ant. 59-60: 

εἰ νόμου Bia 


ahr τυράννων ἢ Kpary πάρεξιμαν-- 





1 Of. verse 251 where Pelasgus calls himself ἀρκῳγέμμ, 


Ὄπ“ ee el lL τ 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy: 147 


If we, despite the law, stand against the decree or might of a’ 
king (alluding to Creon”). 
Ant. 67 (Ismene) : 
τοῖς ἐν τέλει βεβῶσι πείσομαι--- 
7 shall obey the powers that be (Creon). 
Ant. 1057 (Creon to Tiresias) ; 
dp οἶσθα tayovs ὄντας ἂν λέγῃς λέγων ;— 
Dost thou know that what thou sayest is of thy king ? 
(3) The plural is most commonly used as a means of respect- 
ful reference to one in authority ; here too the office of the supe- 


_Yior is magnified, and caution or reserve on the part of the 


speaker implied. 


δεσπόται. 
Agam. 32 (the Guard) : 
τὰ δεσποτῶν (Agamemnon) yap εὖ πεσόντα θήσομαι. 
So too Agamemnon is meant in Cho. 52-53°: 
δνόφοι καλύπτουσι δόμους 
δεσποτῶν θανάτοισιν. 
Hec. 557 (Talthybius) : 
κἀπεὶ τόδ᾽ εἰσήκουσε δεσποτῶν ἔπος, : 
where Agamemnon alone is meant. In verse 1237 of the same 
play Hecuba says to Agamemnon : 
δεσπότας δ᾽ οὐ λοιδορῶ--- 5 
But since thou art a king, I do not rail at thee. 
Eur. Tro. 663-64 (Andromache) : 
τόνδε (Hector) δ᾽ αὖ 
στέργουσ᾽ ἐμαυτῆς δεσπόταις μισήσομαι, 
Pyrrhus alone being meant. 
Ion 755 (Nurse) : 
GAN ἢ τι θεσφάτοισι δεσποτῶν (Xuthus) νοσῶ. 
So Admetus is alluded to by δεσπόταισι in Alc. 138, and Aga- 





its best translation in the English indefinite article. 
2 So οἵδε in verse 927 is Creon. 
5 On this passage see p. 90. 


148 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Med. 61-62 (Nurse) : 
ὦ μῶρος, εἰ χρὴ δεσπότας εἰπεῖν τάδε--- 
Oh, the foolish one (Medea), if 7 may thus speak of my (a) 
mistress '. 
Similarly Creusa is mentioned by the chorus in Ion 233. 
It is noteworthy that the speaker in each of these citations is 
either a slave’® or the chorus. 


κύριοι. 

Cho. 688-οο (Orestes to Clytemnestra) : 

εἰ δὲ τυγχάνω 
τοῖς κυρίοισι καὶ προσήκουσιν λέγων 
οὐκ οἶδα, τὸν τεκόντα δ᾽ εἰκὸς εἰδέναι---- 

Whether perchance I am addressing the authority of the house or 
a relative of his, Ido not know, but itis proper for the parent to 
learn of tt. 

The humble attitude of Orestes goes far to disguise him. 

In verse 658 of the same play, the plural does not involve 
both Aegisthus and Clytemnestra: from the standpoint of the 
pretended friend it means simply the chief person of the palace, 
whoever that might be : 

ἄγγελλε τοῖσι κυρίοισι δωμάτων (says Orestes). 
Aj. 733-4 (Messenger) : 
ἀλλ᾽ ἡμῖν Αἴας ποῦ ᾽στιν ὡς φράσω τάδε; 


τοῖς κυρίοις γὰρ πάντα χρὴ δηλοῦν λόγον. 


οἱ κρατοῦντες. 

Cho. 716-7 (Clytemnestra to Orestes) : 
ἡμεῖς δὲ ταῦτα τοῖς κρατοῦσι δωμάτων 
κοινώσομεν (that is, Aegisthus* alone. ) 

OT. 530 (Chorus to Creon) : 





1 But δέσποινα is found nowhere in Tragedy in the plural. When a woman 
is spoken of in the plural the masculine is always used. 


7As for Andromache (who speaks in Tro. 664, cited p. 147), Tro. 660 
shows her attitude : δουλεύσω δ᾽ ἐν αὐθεντῶν δόμοις. 





8 οἱ κρατοῦντες, meaning Aegisthus and being in the mouth of Clytemnes- 
tra, has a ring of insincerity about it for us! It is much for her to 
acknowledge. 








The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 149 


οὐκ οἶδ᾽ ἃ yap δρῶσ᾽ οἱ κρατοῦντες (Oedipus) ὁρῶ". 
IT. 1301 (Chorus to Messenger) : 
οὐκ εἶ κρατούντων (Thoas) πρὸς πύλας ὅσον τάχος ; 
οἱ κοίρανοι. 
Agam. 549 (Clytemnestra to the Chorus) : 
καὶ T@s; ἀπόντων κοιράνων ἔτρεις τινάς ; 

What? Afraid of somebody because the King is away? There 
would seem to be no point in making κοιράνων include Menelaus. 
It is much more forceful to make it the herald’s respectful sub- 
stitute for ᾿Αγαμέμνονος, as Aeschylean usage warrants. 

Med. 875 (Medea) : 

ἐχθρὰ δὲ γαίας κοιράνοις καθίσταμαι. 


οἱ τύραννοι. 
OT. 1096 (Chorus) : 
ὡς ἐπὶ ἦρα φέροντα τοῖς ἐμοῖς τυράννοις > — 
( Thou, O Cithaeron art praised in our choral song) since thou 
art a joy to my ruler (that is Oedipus). 
Similarly the chorus uses τυράννων in IA. 470; and the chorus 
mentions Creousa as τῶν ἐμῶν τυράννων in Ion 236. 
οἱ ἄνακτες *. 
OC. 294-5 (Chorus) : 
τοὺς δὲ τῆσδε γῆς 
ἄνακτος (Theseus) ἀρκεῖ ταῦτά μοι διειδέναι: 
οἱ πρόμοι. 
OC. 884 (the King is about to enter and the chorus speaks) : 
ἰὼ πᾶς λεώς, ἰὼ yas πρόμοι, 
where the King alone is meant by πρόμοι apparently. 
οἱ δαμοῦχοι. 
OC. 1087 (Chorus) : 
yas τᾶσδε δαμούχοις, 





1 ΤΉ 656 nobles of Thebes have no eyes for indiscretion in their sovereign 
master’’ (Jebb ad loc.). Οὐ vs. 1223 f. 

2 Cf. the blunt τὸν τύραννον Οἰδίπουν of Creon, ib. 513. 

51ῃ Aesch. Supp. 514 the statement is gnomic ; the King Pelasgus thus 
‘‘ gracefully ’’ (See Tucker, note ad loc.) alludes to himself. It is not neces- 
sary to amend the ms. ἀνάκτων to γυναικῶν as do many scholars. 


150 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


where δαμούχοις is best taken as meaning Theseus, just as he alone 
seems to be meant in the same play, verse 1667 (Chorus) : 
ποῦ Sal re παῖδες χοὶ προπέμψαντες φίλων. 
οἱ βασιλεῖς. 

Alc. 131-2 (Chorus) : 
. πάντα yap ἤδη τετέλεσται βασιλεῦσι 
(that is, Admetus’ alone). 

Similarly the chorus refers to Eurystheus in Herac. 294. 

2. THE ALLUSIVE PLURAL OF RELATIONSHIP. 


(a) PARENT. 











‘Aeschylus 6 Sophocles Buripides 
ἘΞ re ices me oS ἢ ἐς oa .Α8: μᾶς ἡ fag) 
οἱ TEKOVTES ee og 681 | I A. 689 
| 
οἱ τεκόμενοι |Cho. 419 
οἱ τοκεῖς Cho. 384, Eum. 152 ΕἸ. 187. Hec. 403 
οἱ πατέρες Cho. 865 | 
| 
¢ a \Kl. 146, 241, 
οἱ γονεῖς | OT. 436, 1495 
ς , OT. 1007, 1012 
ol φυτεύσαντες | : : ; 
oc. 1 | 
| | 377 
ot φύσαντες | | Ion. 561 








The plural when referring to one individual calls attention to 
the relationship rather than the individual. In Eum. 152 the 
plural is apparently an echo of legal phraseology : 

O son of Zeus (Apollo)... . thou hast overthrown aged detttes 
in thy respect for the suppliant (Orestes), a man who is godless 
and τοκεῦσιν πικρόν ; that is, Clytemnestra alone. Orestes is guilty 
of ‘‘ mistreatment of parents,’ ἢ 
Similarly in Sophocles Electra 241-242 Electra says in effect : 


May I not dishonor my father (γονέων). 





! The scholiast takes pains to note that only Admetus is meant: ᾿Αδμήτῳ. 

2 Cf. Andocides (Myst. § 74) on the crimes subject to ἀτιμία, of which one 
is τοὺς γονέας κακῶς ποιεῖν ; also Isocrates (Cir. ὃ 32), κελεύει yap (ὁ νόμος) 
τρέφειν τοὺς γονέας, and similarly Plutarch (Sol. ἢ 22). 


—— pt Ae 


er πο 





The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. [51 


In OT. 1176 the language savors both of the legal and the 
oracular : 
κτενεῖν viv τοὺς τεκόντας ἦν λόγος, 
but τεκόντας means only the father. 
The statement in Cho. 329-31 is gnomic', though Agamemnon 
alone is alluded to: 
πατέρων τε Kal τεκόντων 
γόος ἔνδικος ματεύει 
τ᾽ ἄποιν᾽ ἀμφιλαφὴς ταραχθείς--- 
True grief for a father and parent is a world-wide searcher of 
vengeance. 
In the generalization the challenge to Orestes and Electra be- 
comes milder. 
In Cho. 418-19, however, only Clytemnestra can be thought of : 
Orestes—ri Sav φάντες τύχοιμεν ; ἢ τάπερ 
πάθομεν ἄχεα πρός γε τῶν τεκομένων ὕ--- 
What might we say rightly? Οδ τυλαέ wrongs have we suffered 
at the hands of—yes, her that gave us birth ? 
Similarly τοκεῦσι in verse 384 is best taken as referring simply. 
to Clytemnestra : 
τοκεῦσι δ᾽ ὅμως»τελεῖται--- 
But still, for a mother vengeance ts on the way. 
Same play, verse 865 (Chorus) : 
πατέρων θ᾽ ἕξει μέγαν ὄλβον, 
that is, Agamemnon, but of course πατέρων might have the idea of 
the accumulated wealth of the house. 
Ion 560 (Ion) : 
ἦ θίγω δῆθ᾽ οἵ μ᾽ ἔφυσαν ;— 
Am I really embracing him that begot me (that is, Xuthus) ? 
So too Xuthus alone is meant in verse 1561,(@voacr). 
OT. 1007 (Oedipus) : 
ἀλλ᾽ οὔποτ᾽ εἶμι τοῖς φυτεύσασίν (Merope) γ᾽ ὁμοῦ 
1So IA. 689 ἢ: /t grieves a father (τοὺς τεκόντας) to give upa child. Hee. 
403 is similar. 
2 Cf. ib. 681 f.: 
πρὸς τοὺς Texdvras ... . τεθνεῶτ᾽ ᾿᾽Ορέστην εἰπέ. 
The plural may be father, mother, or both. To all that know in this case 


{and that includes the pretending Orestes), it means Clytemnestra alone. 
Cf. the generalizing masculine singular, ib. 690. 





152 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


The messenger has just announced the death of Polybus. 


Soph. El. 185-86 (Electra) : 

ἀλλ᾽ ἐμὲ μὲν ὃ πολὺς ἀπολέλοιπεν ἤδη 

βίοτος ἀνέλπιστος, οὐδ᾽ ἔτ᾽ dpKa: 

ἅτις ἄνευ τοκέων κατατάκομαι, 
alluding especially to her father Agamemnon’. Meineke, fol- 
lowed by Nauck and Jebb, emends the manuscript reading to 
τεκέων ἡ. Jebb states three reasons for accepting the change: (1) 
‘« She is saying that the best days of her life have gone by with- 
out giving her anything to hope for. It would be inappropriate 
to justify this (as the causal ἅτις does) by saying that she is 
pining away ‘without parents’, or a husband’s care, while the 
mention of children is perfectly in place.’’ (2) ‘‘ The very order 
of words, τεκέων... . ἀνήρ, is confirmed by vs. 164 f., ἄτεκνος 

. . . ἀνύμφευτος. (3) ‘‘ If τοκέων be right it means that, while 
Agamemnon is dead, the living Clytemnestra is a μήτηρ ἀμήτωρ. 
(1154): but this is forced.’’ 

But it seems to be unnecessary to deviate from the mss.: (1) 
Electra says her life is without hope ; she not only has in mind 
her deceased father but the fact that he is not present to guaran- 
tee her a happy wedding, such as would befit' a princess. This 
point of view satisfies the requirement of those who desire to 
read τεκέων. (2) The unvarying authority of the manuscripts 
for τοκέων would at least demand a much stronger case than has 
yet been made out for τεκέων. 








(b) CHILD. 
Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides 
IA. 396, 403, 490, 
τὰ τέκνα Persae 218 OC. 946, 736, 1015, 1104, 1169, 
Ν τῷ 1250 (τέκνων) 1209; Hec. 750 
| 
οἱ παῖδες ὃ Ὃς, 970 IA. 399, 690. 








1 At another place she speaks of her mother as being μήτηρ ἀμήτωρ (verse 
1154). Ε 

3 Ellendt (Lex. Soph.) and Kaibel (Elektra, Leipsic, 1896) retain τοκέων. 

5 For the use of Liberi of one child, see Schmalz, Zeitschrift fiir das Gym- 
nasialwesen, 1881, p. 121. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 153 


As in the case of the plural for one parent, so too the plural 
for one child apparently reflects the wording of the Athenian 
law. In the First Speech of Lysias’ Euphiletus says: ἐκείνην τε 
διέφθειρε Kai τοὺς παῖδας τοὺς ἐμοὺς ἤσχυνε. ‘The context shows that 
Euphiletus had only one child, which he calls παιδίον * here and there 
in the speech. The plural directs attention to the child assuch: 
the law which prohibits placing a stigma of shame upon a child is 
broken. 

The same idea stands out clearly in the Tenth Speech *, where 
the speaker refers to himself alone: τεθνάναι μὲν ὑπὸ τῶν ἐχθρῶν, 
αἰτίαν δ᾽ ἔχειν ὑπὸ τῶν παίδων---- 

[ What would be more dreadful to my father than] to die at the 
hand of an enemy, but to suffer the repute of being murdered by a 
child of his. 

OC. 969-70 preserves, apparently, the plural of an oracle : 

Oedipus—érei δίδαξον, εἴ τι θέσφατον πατρὶ 

χρησμοῖσιν ἱκνεῖθ᾽ ὥστε πρὸς παίδων θανεῖν---- 

So tell me, if according to the oracle some divine fate was coming 
to my-_ father, to die at the hand of a son. . 

In verse 946 there, ἀνόσιοι τέκνων savors of a law against incest 
(Oedipus alone is meant) ; and soa law on the murder of off- 
spring in IA. 490: 

σκοπῶν ἐσεῖδον οἷον ἦν κτείνειν τέκνα, 
that is, Iphigenia. 

One more of the many instances in Euripides will suffice, 
namely, : 

IA. 396-9, where both τέκνα and παῖδες are of Iphigenia alone: 

τἀμὰ δ᾽ οὐκ ἀποκτενῶ ᾽γὼ τέκνα, κοὐ τὸ σὸν μὲν εὖ 
παρὰ δίκην ἔσται κακίστης εὔνιδος τιμωρίᾳ 

ἐμὲ δὲ συντήξουσι νύκτες ἡμέραι τε δακρύοις, 
ἄνομα δρῶντα κοὐ δίκαια παῖδας οὕς ἐγεινάμην. 


One case in Aeschylus deserves special mention, Pers. 216-9 





᾿ξ 4. 
"EF. g. ὃ 6. 
3§ 28. 


154 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


(Chorus to Atossa) : 
θεοὺς δὲ προστροπαῖς ἱκνουμένη 
εἴ τι φλαῦρον εἶδες, αὐτοῦ τῶνδ᾽ ἀποτροπὴν τελεῖν, 
τὰ δ᾽ ἀγάθ᾽ ἐκτελῆ γενέσθαι σοί τε καὶ τέκνοις σέθεν 
καὶ πόλει φίλοις τε πᾶσι. 

Very strangely some of the editors—even Weil and Wecklein * 
—read τέκνῳ, but the mss. have the plural. The scholiast cor- 
rectly interprets by ““τῷ Ξέρξῃ"; following which Wecklein 
makes the change ‘‘ διότι μόνος ὃ Ἐέρξης ἐννοεῖται ἐνταῦθα, ὡς στίχ. 
225’ (222) “᾿ καὶ 230’’ (227). Wecklein might also have added 
verses 177 and 189 where Atossa speaks of Xerxes as παῖς ἐμός. 
Within the compass of 45 verses (177-222) Xerxes is referred 
to by the singular 5 times and by the plural only once. 
And yet to emend to the singular is without justifica- 
tion: (1) Allare agreed that only Xerxes is meant. (2) If 
the scholiast’s text read τέκνῳ in verse 218, it would 
have been strange indeed for him to explain it as referring 
to Xerxes at this point and make no such enlightening refer- 
ence to the earlier zais (verse 177) or τέκνῳ (verse 222). The 
fact that the scholion appears is evidence that there was a plural 
in the text, which amid several uses of the singular—all mean- 
ing one and the same person—might to the casual reader need 
interpretation. (3) Why is the pluralused here? The chorus, 
Atossa’s well-meaning counsellors, suggest prayer to her. The 
prayer they prescribe savors of a set form or ritual something 
like this: 

Whosoever hath an ominous vision or hath aught to fear should 
approach the gods with supplications, praying that calamity may be 
averted and that heavenly blessings may fall upon himself, his chit- 
dren and all his friends. 

Thus τέκνοις echoes the formula. (4) The chorus prescribes a 
further religious observance in verses 219-20: 

δεύτερον δὲ χρὴ χοὰς 


γῇ τε καὶ φθιτοῖς χέασθαι--- 





1 Wetklein formerly read τέκνοις, but in his latest edition reads τέκνῳ. 
2See note, p. 266; ed. 1891. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 155 


Pour out libations to earth and dead, that is Darius' who had 
just appeared to the queen in a horrifying vision. "To be con- 
sistent, why not emend to φθιτῷ here as well as to τέκνῳ above’? 


3. MEMBER OF FAMILY IN GENERAL. 


(a) The pronoun of the third person as well as the noun is 
used in the plural to refer to one individual. This usually ap- 
plies to some member of the family. 

In Lysias we have πολλὰ καὶ δεινὰ πεπονθότες ὑφ᾽ ὧν ἥκιστα ἐχρῆν, 

«where the relative clause is a stereotyped expression, ὧν meaning 
only Diogeiton. Cicero*® has the same thing. 

In Tragedy the notion of the existing relationship becomes 
stressed when the name of the individual is lost in the plurality. 
Thus the plural obviously serves a dramatic purpose in some in- 
stances, as for example in OT. 1184-5 (Oedipus) : 

ὅστις πέφασμαι pis τ᾽ ἀφ᾽ ὧν οὐ χρῆν ξὺν οἷς τ᾽ (Locaste) 
οὐ χρῆν ὁμιλῶν, οὕς τέ (Oedipus) μ᾽ οὐκ ἔδει κτανών, 
and same play 1273-4 (Oedipus) : 
ἀλλ᾽ ἐν σκότῳ τὸ λοιπὸν οὕς μὲν (Locaste) οὐκ ἔδει 
ὀψοίαθ᾽, οὕς δ᾽ (Laius) ἔχρῃζεν οὐ γνωσοίατο, 
and OC. 547 (Oedipus) : 
καὶ yap ἄν, οὕς (Laius) ἐφόνευσ᾽ ἐμ᾽ ἀπώλεσαν. 

Compare also OT 1561 ---ἀφ᾽ ὧν * (Laius) and also verse 1360— 
ἀνοσίων (Iocaste). The plural in every case both avoids the 
specific and softens the statement. 

In Cho. 215 the plural pronoun has a sense of vagneness about 
it which aids to stay the recognition : 

Orestes—e«is ὄψιν ἥκεις ὧνπερ ἐξηύχου πάλαι. 

In IA. 864 the Presbytes begins to break the news to Clytem- 
nestra of Iphigenia’s impending doom. He says: σώσαθ᾽ οὕς ἐγὼ 





1 Cf. vs. 619 ff. where amid the libation ceremonies Darius is summoned 
from below, being addressed as δαίμων. 

2 Since writing the above, I have noted that scholion B on φθιτοῖς (v. 523) 
is ““τῷ Δαρείῳ Sndovéri,’’ but there no one has thought to emend the text ! 

*Fam. V, 1: Video me disertum a quibus minime conveniebat. 


“Cf Jebb’s note ad loc. 


156 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


᾿θέλω, but not until verse 873 is the formula displaced by the ex- 
plicit statement : 
παῖδα σὴν πατὴρ ὃ φύσας αὐτόχειρ μέλλει κτανεῖν. ᾿ 

(b) Both the neuter and masculine plural of φίλος are found 
often when but one person is alluded to. 

ot φίλοι and of φίλτατοι. 

The force of these plurals is essentially the same as (e. g.) 
γονεῖς and τέκνα ; they call attention particularly to the relation- 
ship, kinship. 

Cho. 234 (Orestes) : 

τοὺς φιλτάτους; (Clytemnestra) γὰρ οἶδα νῷν ὄντας πικρούς--- 

For I know that she who ts bound to us by the closest ties is our 
bitter enemy. 

Same play, verses 831-34 (the Chorus nee Orestes )— 

Περσέως τ᾽ ἐν φρεσὶν 

καρδίαν ἀἁ ανασ χεθὼν 

τοῖς θ᾿ ὑπὸ χθονὸς φίλοις (Agamemnon alone) 
τοῖς τ᾿ ἄνωθεν προπράσσων κτέ" 

Taking in thy soul the courage of Perseus, accomplishing (ven- 
gence) for thy deceased father and thy living sister. 

OT. 366-7 (Tiresias to Oedipus) : 

λεληθέναι σε φημὶ σὺν τοῖς φιλτάτοις 
αἴσχισθ᾽ δμιλοῦντ(α) --- 

7 say that thou hast been consorting unconsciously with thy near- 
est relative (locaste). 

In Soph. El. 346 and 395 the plural of Φίλος isof Agamemnon ; 
and in verse 652 Clytemnestra means only Aegisthus (φίλοισι). 
Compare also φίλοι, Antigone 634. 

Ant. 437-39 (Guard) 

τὸ μὲν yap αὐτὸν ἐκ κακῶν πεφευγέναι 
ἥδιστον" ἐς κακὸν δὲ τοὺς φίλους ἄγειν 
ἀλγεινόν. 

The scholiast explains φίλους thus: φησί, διὰ τὸ εἶναι τὴν 
᾿Αντιγόνην τοῦ βασιλικοῦ γένους. Jebb acquiesces in the statement 





1Cf. Eum. 100 where φιλτάτων is probably of Orestes alone (Wecklein— 
‘‘gemein von dem Sohne’’). 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 157 


on the ground that the guard is ‘‘a δοῦλος of the family,’’ as the 
scholiast too doubtless thought. So farasI have been able to 
discover, such a notion in the plural of φίλος is unparalleled in 
Tragedy. The statement here is gnomic in force’ anyway, 
though of course Antigone is the one alluded to. Humphreys? 
has already mentioned the lack of necessity for the scholiasts’ 
interpretation. 


IA. 744-45 : 
σοφίζομαι δὲ κἀπὶ τοῖσι φιλτάτοις (Iphigenia) 
τέχνας πορίζω. | 
Same play verses 839-40 (Clytemnestra) : 
πᾶσιν τόδ᾽ ἐμπέφυκεν αἰδεῖσθαι φίλους ὃ 
καινοὺς ὁρῶσι καὶ γάμου μεμνημένους. 
Other places for reference* are IA. 334, 404, 408, 1022, 1241, 
1453; IT. 1213; Ion 700, 648—ovs (Creusa) ἐγὼ φιλῶ. 
Here may be included OC. 146-8 : 
ov yap ἂν ὧδ᾽ ἀλλοτρίοις 
ὄμμασιν εἵἷρπον 
κἀπὶ σμικροῖς μέγας ὥρμουν---- 
7 would otherwise not bc walking by the eyes of another and, large 
man that I am, be resting upon the weak (7. e. Antigone’). 


'Cf. Pers. 702. 

? Note in his Antigone ad loc., p. ror. 

3 φίλους καίνους may be a delicate way of saying new member of family. 

*Just as οἱ φίλοι, so οἱ ἐχθροί appears in Tragedy a few times referring to but 
one as in (¢. g.) Aeschylus Cho. 615 f.: 

ἅτ᾽ ἐχθρῶν ὑπαὶ 

φῶτ᾽ ἀπώλεσαν φίλον---- 
She (Scylla) induced by an enemy (Minos) ruined her dear father. 
Similarly Agamemnon is alluded to by Clytemnestra in Agam. 1374, Aegis- 
thus by Electra in Soph. El. 593. And so ἐχθίστοισι Trach. 1237. 

5 Schol.—‘‘ κἀπὶ σμικροῖς μέγας ὥρμουν : καὶ ἐπὶ εὐτελέσιν αἰτήμασιν οὐκ ἂν σφόδρα 
ἱκέτευον εἰ μὴ ἤμην δυστυχής." But as Jebb notes, this is evasive. The follow- 
ing interpretation also appears in the Scholia and is correct: τοῦτο δέ φησι 
παρ᾽ ὅσον μέγας ὧν κατὰ μέγεθος καὶ τὴν ἡλικίαν ὑπὸ σμικρᾶς THs θυγατρὸς ὁδηγεῖται. 
Campbell (note ad loc.) thinks the latter interpretation ‘‘attributes a 
doubtful use both to the dative and to the plural.’’ But that the dative is 
not a doubtful use shows the exact parallel ἐπὶ δυσὶ βουλαῖς ὥσπερ ἀγκύραις 
ὁρμοῦσαν. ... τὴν πόλιν (Plutarch Solon 19) ; that the masculine or neuter 
plural is not infrequent in Tragedy when applied to a female has already 
appeared in these pages ; that this meaning of σμικροῖς is more apropos here 
is obvious. 


158 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


Just as φίλος and φίλτατος refer to one woman in the plural, so 
also σμικροὶ. σμικροῖς may, however, be neuter as the uses of 
φίλτατα (following) show, but in either case the meaning is the 
same. 

2) τὰ φίλτατα. 

Even in prose the substantival plural neuter adjective is used 
of persons, but so far as I have seen the meaning there is plural 
as in (64. 9). Xenophon’s Cyropedia, IV, 3, δ΄: 

The soldiers said they could fight better if they had τὰ φίλτατα 
along with them. 

The bearing of plurality on the meaning is the same as that of 
οἱ φίλοι. 

Pers. 851 (Atossa) : 

ob yap τὰ φίλτατ᾽ " (Xerxes) ἐν κακοῖς προδώσομεν. 
Phil. 434 (Philoctetes) : 
Πάτροκλος, ὃς σοῦ πατρὸς Hv τὰ φίλτατα. 
Soph. El. 1208 (Electra to Orestes) : 
μή, πρὸς γενείου, μὴ ᾿ξέλῃ τὰ φίλτατα 
(1. e. the urn containing the supposed ashes of Orestes). 
Ion 521 (Xuthns to Ion) : 
σωφρονῶ, τὰ φίλταθ᾽ εὑρὼν εἰ φιλεῖν ἐφίεμαι. 
IA. 458 (Agamemnon) : 
( Clytemnestra has come) τὰ φίλτατα ([phigenia only) δώσουσ(α). 


4. THE ALLUSIVE PLURAL” OF RESERVE. 


Two classes of words come into observation here: those con- 
cerning criminals and the dead. Ineach case the plural avoids 
the specific, whether it be from caution, regard, or some other 
dramatic purpose. 

(a) THE CRIMINAL, 

As the Tenth Speech of Lysias shows, to accuse an innocent 
person of crime was an indictable offense. The speaker there 
whom Theomnestus had accused of murder repeatedly accuses 
his‘slanderer of throwing away his shield; but he carefully 


1 Cf. also Lysias XIII, 46 and Demosthenes XVIII, 215. 
2Schol. ‘‘ rods φιλτάτους." 





The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. [59 


avoids a specific charge by using the plural (τοῖς ἀποβάλλουσι) 
and other means to keep himself without the pale of the law. 

The uses of the plural in Tragedy point back to the phaseology 
of the law for their origin’. 

Agam. 1323-25 (Cassandra): 

ἡλίου δ᾽ ἐπεύχομαι 
πρός ὕστατον φῶς τοῖς ἐμοῖς τιμαόροις (Orestes *) 
ἐχθροῖς φονεῦσι (Clytemnestra) τοῖς τίνειν ὁμοῦ---- 

7 beseech the sun for my avengers to repay thy hateful murderers. 

In Cho. 41 τοῖς κτανοῦσι is primarily (at least) of Clytemnestra 
who struck the blow‘, while τοὺς γᾶς νέρθεν (verse 40) is of 
Agamemnon alone. 

Sophocles Antigone 1263-64 (Creon) : 

ὦ κτανόντας τε καὶ 

θανόντας βλέποντες ἐμφυλίους--- 
O ye, seeing slayer (Creon himself) and the slain (Haemon). 
OT. 105-6: 

τούτου θανόντος viv ἐπιστέλλει σαφῶς 

τοὺς αὐτοέντας χειρὶ τιμωρεῖν τινας--- 

Now that he (Laius) zs dead, (Phoebus) bids us plainly to mete 
out vengeance to the murderer, whoever it may be. 

So Oedipus in repeating the oracle says τοὺς κτανόντας (verse 
308 ). 

And. 403 (Andromache) : 

povedow Ἕκτορος νυμφεύομαι, 

Neoptolemus the son of the actual murderer being meant. The 
individual meant is not the material point: she is to be in a 
house stained with blood. She expresses the same sentiment in 
Tro. 660: δουλεύσω δ᾽ ἐν αὐθεντῶν δόμοις. 

IA. 1189 (Clytemnestra to Agamemnon, bitterly) : 








*§ 30. 

2C. I. A. I, 61: τοὺς δὲ ἀνδροφόνους ἐξεῖναι ἀποκτείνειν xré. See also Demos. 
Arist. ὃ 51 and Antiphon Tetr. A. γ. % 8 (οἱ κτείναντες). 

3’ That Cassandra has Orestes in mind is shown by verses 1280-1 : ἥξει yap 
ἡμῶν ἄλλος αὖ rysdopos..... ποινάτωρ πατρός. 

*Cf. Agam. 1633 ff. (Chorus to Aegisthus) : 

Thou didst plan, but didst not execute the deed. 


160 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


. ἢ Tap ἀσυνέτους τοὺς θεοὺς ἡ γοίμεθ᾽ ἄν, 
εἰ τοῖσιν αὐθένταισιν εὖ φρονήσομεν--- 

Indeed I should regard the gods devoid of reason, if I shall feel 
kindly toward a murderer (7. e. Agamemnon himself). 

The following instances show the plural’s dramatic value: the 
oracular vagueness of the plural intensifies the irony’ of the 
situation. 

OT. 106-07 (Creon to Oedipus) : 

τούτου θανόντος νῦν ἐπιστέλλει σαφῶς 
τοὺς αὐτοέντας χειρὶ τιμωρεῖν τινας. 

But compare verses 308-9 of the same play when Oedipus says : 

(Phoebus responded that the only way our deliverance could come 
was )— 

εἰ τοὺς κτανόντας Λάϊον μαθόντες εὖ 
κτείναιμεν, ἢ γῆς φυγάδας ἐκπεμψαίμεθα. 

More terrible irony” can scarcely be imagined than this, or 
that of verses 122-23 where Creon says to Oedipus : 

λῃστὰς ἔφασκε. συντυχόντας οὗ μιᾷ 

ῥώμῃ κτανεῖν νιν, ἀλλὰ σὺν πλήθει χερῶν, 
with which compare verses 124-5: 

πῶς οὖν ὃ λῃστής, εἴ τι μὴ ξὺν ἀργύρῳ 

ἐπράσσετ᾽ ἐνθένδ᾽, ἐς τόδ᾽ ἂν τόλμης ἔβη; 
To the audience, λῃστάς is Oedipus alone; to him it is more than 
one person as verses 842-4 show. The singular (verse 124) 
‘may only be an idiomatic way of speaking, but may also be a 
stroke of art in representing Oedipus as wholly careless about 
number of persons’*,’’ 

The plural thus assists in retarding the action of the plot to 
verses 842-44 when Oedipus says to Iocaste : 

λῃστὰς ἔφασκες αὐτὸν ἄνδρας ἐννέπειν 
ὥς νιν κατακτείναιεν εἰ μὲν οὖν ἔτι 


, Ν Ν.9 
λέξει τὸν αὐτὸν ἀριθμόν, οὐκ ἐγὼ 'κτανον. 








1Qn Tragic Irony in Sophocles see Thirlwall, Philological Museum, Vol. 
II, and Haigh, The Tragic Drama of the Greeks, pp, 174 ff. 

* Other instances where the allusive plural serves the purpose of tragic 
irony are: Agam. 608, 788, 840; IA. 659, Med. 1016 (ἄλλου). Note how 
unveiled thought would precipitate the action of the plot. 

§Camp, quoted by White (note ad loc. ). 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 161 


What was to Oedipus an immaterial point earlier in the play is 
now paramount. ᾿ 
‘Ant. 1172--5: 
Cho. τί δ᾽ αὖ τόδ᾽ ἄχθος βασιλέων ἥκεις φέρων; 
Mess. τεθνᾶσιν (Haemon) οἱ δὲ (Creon) ζῶντες αἴτιοι θανεῖν. 
Cho. καὶ ris φονεύει ; τίς δ᾽ ὃ κείμενος ; λέγε. 
Mess. Αἵμων ὄλωλεν" αὐτοχεὶρ δ᾽ αἰμάσσεται. 
The plural protracts the suspense—an art in which Sophocles 
is peculiarly gifted’. 
(b) THE DEAD. 
The plural calls attention to the state of death and in general 
is euphemistic. 
τοὺς yas νέρθεν (Cho. 40), βροτοῖς (verse 129), φθιμένων (verse 
403) all allude to Agamemnon ; the same is true of of yas ὑπαὶ 
κείμενοι and οἱ θανόντες in Soph. El. 1419-1421. 
Cho. 376-77" (Chorus) : 
τῶν μὲν ἀρωγοὶ 
κατὰ γῆς ἤδη--- | 
We now have a helper (Agamemnon) beneath the earth. 
Pers. 229: 
τοῖς T ἔνερθε γῆς φίλοις * ( Darius‘). 
Similarly φθίτοις in verse 218. 
Soph. El. 832-3 (Electra to Chorus) : 
εἰ τῶν φανερῶς οἰχομένων εἰς "Aidav ἐλπίδ᾽ ὑποί---- 
σεις, κατ᾽ ἐμοῦ τακομένας μᾶλλον ἐπεμβάσει--- 
Tf you afford me any hope for them (Orestes) that are surely 
departed, you will crush me still deeper into sorrow. 
- Here both verb and plurality serve euphemism. - 
In Ant. 1263-4 (quoted page 159) θανόντας is of Haemon as 
κτανόντας is of Creon. 
Cho. 886 (Nurse to Clytemnestra) : 


x “ ΄, Ν ΄ Pry 
TOV ζῶντα KQLVELY TOUS τεθνηκότας λέγω. 





1Cf. Soph. El. 666-673. 

2 On τοίς θανοῦσι (Iphigenia) see p. 90. 

5 Wecklein’s emendation to φίλα is not convincing. 
*Schol. : ἤγουν τῷ Δαρείῳ. 


162 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 


The scholiast says: “ὁ τῷ λόγῳ τεθνηκὼς ᾿Ορέστης ἀπέκτεινε' τὸν 
ζῶντα Αἴγισθον." 

The verse is at once ambiguous and paradoxical. Tension ‘of 
interest is sustained and the climax is postponed. 

Eum. 599 (Furies to Orestes) : 

νεκροῖσ ΐ νυν were θι μητέρα κτανών. 

When Orestes says, 7 have faith ; help will come from my yaar: 
—from the tomb, the reply comes, yes, have faith in the dead, now 
that thou hast slain thy mother. 

The plural which may be either plural or singular in meaning 
is particularly cutting : the Chorus means to suggest to Orestes 
the idea of procuring his mother’s assistance ! 

Cho. 803-04 (Chorus) : 

τῶν πάλαι πεπραγμένων 
λύσασθ᾽ αἷμα προσφάτοις δίκαις. 

Hermann deletes πεπραγμένων. Other editors (as a rule) read 
it and interpret as neuter. Schtitz’ alone regards it as-mascu- 
line: ‘‘ Virorum olim occisorum sanguinem nova vindicta ex- 
piate.’’ Blaydes reads διαπεπραγμένων. Schtitz may be right, and, 
if so, the plural is a euphemistic allusion to Agamemnon. Com- 
pare Cho. 132-133 where Electra says : 

πεπραγμένοι yap νῦν γέ πως ἀλώμεθα 
πρὸς τῆς τεκούσης. 

The scholiast interprets by Ἅ““νενικημένοι, κατηγωνισμένοι. The 
editors disregard the evidence and emend to πεπραμένοι, following 
Casaubon. It is not unlikely that the scholiast is right, and that 
in the two passages cited the word has the force of done for as is 
often the case with the compound διαπεπραγμένος ἧ. Ξ 

In either case the meaning would be more forceful, and in the 
᾿ first passage cited αἷμα would be more appropriate (blood of him 
bes zs done por): 


. But as  Verrall notes, ‘the verb ἑαυ ie means ‘‘ is about killing.’? Clytem- 
nestra does not know Aegisthus is dead till verse 892. 





2 Vol. III, p. 115, Halle, 1808. 
5 E.g. Cho. 880: 
οὐχ ὥστ᾽ ἀρῆξαι διαπεπραγμένῳ, 
7.6. τῷ σφαγέντι, as the scholiast notes. 


The Poetic Plural of Greek Ti ragedy. 163 


Sept. 419-21: 
τρέμω δ᾽ αἱματη--- 
φόρους μόρους ὑπὲρ φίλων 
ὁλομένων ἰδέσθαι--- 

Of a man slain fora friend, that is Melanippus alone. This 
passage has caused commentators no little worry, but the mss. 
reading should stand; and ὀλομένων is the best taken apart from 
φίλων. The article is often thus omitted in Aeschylus as (e. g.) 
παραβᾶσιν, Agam. 59, and πιπλάντων, Cho. 361°. 


5. NEUTER AND ABSTRACT PLURALS. 


Such plurals are not infrequently used in Tragedy, referring 
to one person (or thing) and seem to carry poetic feeling. 
(a) Neuters in -ya and Adjectival Substantives. 
Or. 1053: 
μνῆμαι». ὅς, » κέδρου τεχνάσματα ". 
Hipp. 116-17: 
προσευξόμεσθα τοῖσι σοῖς ἀγάλμασι (statue) 
δέσποινα Κύπρι. 
Hec. 265: 
Ἑλένην wy αἰτεῖν χρῆν τάφῳ προσφάγματα (victim). 
Hipp. 11: 
Ἱππόλυτος, ἁγνοῦ Πιτθέως παιδεύματα (pupil). 
Alc. 1028-9 : 
ὅθεν κομίζω τήνδε νικητήρια (prize of victory). 
λαβών. 
Med. 1348: 
ὃς οὔτε λέκτρων νεογάμων ὀνήσομαι--- 
For I shall never rejoice ο᾽ er my new-found bride’. 
Tro. 252: 


LA 
οὔκ, ἀλλὰ λέκτρων σκότια νυμφευτήρια, 





1Cf. especially the notes of Bloomfield, Hermann, Wecklein, Sidgwick 
and Verrall. 

2 Cf. T 268—xpuods . . . . δῶρα θέοιο, Vergil Aen. VIII, 729—Clipeum Vol- 
cani dona. 

3 Similarly Hel. 1634, IA. 382. 


164 The Poetic Plural of:Greek Tragedy. 


where σκότια νυμφευτήρια is concubine. For other similar uses of 
the neuter plural see ἀριστεῖα (Bacch. 1239), ἀκροθίνια (Phoen. 
203), συγκοιμήματα (And. 1273). 

(b) ABSTRACTS. 


Trach. 1138-39 (Hyllus) : 
στέργημα yap δοκοῦσα προσβαλεῖν σέθεν 
ἀπήμπλαχ᾽, ὡς προσεῖδε τοὺς ἔνδον γάμους ΄"--- 

when she saw the bride (lole) within. 

Hyllus thus refers to Iole whose name he avoids with con- 
tempt. 

Soph. El. 1232-1233 (Electra) : 

iw γοναὶ 
γοναὶ σωμάτων ἐμοὶ φιλτάτων --- 

O thou offspring, offspring of the dearest life to me. γοναί alludes 
merely to Orestes and σωμάτων to Agamemnon. As Jebb notes, 
σωμάτων for σώματος is ‘‘ seemingly unique,’’ but the influence of 
φιλτάτων which is so common for the singular easily accounts for 
enallage in σῶμα. ΤῸ make yova/ include Orestes is to me an un- 
tenable position, for it not only weakens the force of the senti- 
ment, but also renders the interpretation of σωμάτων extremely 
awkward. 





1Cf. IA. 271, βαρβάρων χάριν γάμων. 


ἀγκύλαι, 34 
ἀγρεύματα, 48 
᾿ ἀγχόναι, 46 
αἰγιαλοί, 10, 105 
αἵματα, 14, 83, 105 
ἀκμόνες, 37 
ἀκταί, 9, τὸ 
ἀναδέσμαι, 20, 21 
ἀναδήματα, 20, 21, 105 
ἄνακτες, 145, 149 
ἀνάκτορα, 59, 105 
ἀνδρῶνες, 61, 63 
ἀντίθυρα, 76, τοῦ 
ἄντρα, 64, 65, 106 
ἄντυγες, 43, 44 
ἄξονες, 44 
ἄρκυες, 47 
ἅρματα, 40, 41 
ἁρπαγαί, 103 
ἅρπαι, 36, 107 
dprdvar, 46, 107 
ἀρχαί, 93, 94 
ἀρχηγέται, 145 
(ot) ἄρχοντες, 145 
ἀσπίδες, 35 
αὐλαί, 61, 62, 107 
αὕλια, 64, 65, 108 
αὐχένες, 25, 108 
βάκτρα, 39, 108 
βασιλεῖς, 145, 150 


βέλη, 32, 33 
βρόχοι, 45, 108 
βωμοί, 79 


γάμοι, 3, 97, 109, 163 
γένεια, 24, 25 

γενείαδες, 24, 25, 30, 31 
γένυες, 24, 35, 109 


GREEK 





INDEX 


γλῶσσαι, 102 

yovai, 164 

γονεῖς, 150 

γράμματα, 48 

γραφαί, 48 

daires, 16, 109 
δάπεδα, 11 

δεῖπνα, 16, I10 
δέλτοι, 3, 48, 49, 110 
δέμνια, Ἴ7,. 110 
δεσμά, 45 

δεσμοί, 44, 110, 111 
δεσμώματα, 45 
δεσπόται, 145, 147 
δημοῦχοι, 145 
διαρροαί, 13 
διαφθοραί, 85, 88 
δίκτυα, 45, 47, 48 
δίφροι, 41, 42, 111 
δόλοι, 111 ᾿ 
δόμοι, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 111 
δρόσοι, 14, 112 
δρυμοί, 12, 112 
δυσμαί, 89, 93 
δώματα, 49, 50, 51, 52, 54, 55, 112 
ἕδραι, 67, 73 

ἕδρανα, 67, 74 
ἑδώλια, 61, 62 
ἔθειραι, 30, 31 

εἵματα, 17, 18 
eioxtat, 61, 64 
εἴσοδοι, 76 

ἔνοπτρα, 37 

ἐπίκρανα, 79, 80 
ἐπιστολαί, 48 

ἕρκη, 45, 46, 47 


ἑστιάματα, 16 


166 


ἐσχάραι, 79, 80 

εὐναί͵ 77, 78 
εὐνατήρια, 77, 78 
εὐνήματα, 77; 78 
ἐῶραι, 46, 113 

ζῶναι, 19, 113 

noves, 9, IO 

θᾶκοι, 67, 72, 73 
θαλάμαι, 64, 66 
θάλαμοι, 61, 62, 113 
θάνατοι, 6, 89, 90, 91, 113 
(οἱ) θανόντες, 159, 161 
θοινάματα, 16 

θρόνοι, 67,68,69, 70, 71, 72, 93,96 
θύματα, 89, 92 

θυμοί, 100, 102 

θύραι, 74, 75, 76 
θύρετρα, 74, 76 

ἰοί, 34 

καλύμματα, 20 

κανόνες, 37 
κατασκαφαί, 89, 93 
κέδροι, 82, 114 

κέντρα, 36, 114 
κλίμακες, 37 

κλισίαι, 60, 61, 77, 78 
κλίτυες, 12 

κλοπαί, 103, 114 
κοίρανοι, 145, 149 
κοῖται, 77, 78, 115 
κολεοί, 35, 115 
κόλποι, ΤΟ, 11, 27 
κόμαι, 30, 31 

κονίαι, 15 

κόραι, 22, 24 

κρέα, 1 

κράτη, 93, 95, 96 

(οἱ) κρατοῦντες, 145, 148 
κρήδεμνα, 19 





‘Greek Index. 


κρημνοί , 12 


᾿κρηπίδες, 79, 80, 115 


κύματα, 13 

κύριοι, 145, 148 

λαιμοί, 24, 25, 115 
λέκτρα, 77, 78, 116 

λέχη, 77, 116 

λῃσταί, 160 

3, 4, 9, 10, 116 
λουτρά, 13 

λόχμαι, 12, 117 

μανίαι, TOO, 102, 117 
μαντεῖα, 60 

μαστοί, 27 

μέλαθρα, 56, 117 

μέτωπα, 22, 24, 117 
μίτραι, 20, 21, 118 
μνηστεύματα, 97, 99 
μόροι, 89, 92, 118 

μυχοί, τι, 118 

ναοΐ, 59, 118 

νίπτρα, 13 

νόσοι, 100, IOI, 119 
νόστοι, 110 

νυμφεῖα, 61, 64, 97, 98,119 
νυμφεύματα, 97, 98 

νῶτα, 28, 29, 119 
EevOves, 61, 64 

ξίφη, 32, 33 ᾿ 
οἶκοι, 51, 52, 52, 55, 56, [20 
ὄμματα, 22, 24, 120 
ὀργαί, 100 


λιμένες, 


ὅρια, 12 
δρίσματα, 12 
ὅρμοι, 10, 120 
ὅροι, 12 
ὄροφοι, 58 

> 2 

ὀχήματα, 41 
ὄχθαι, 8 


ὄχθοι, 12 

ὄχοι, 40, 41, 42, 121 
πάγοι, II, 14; 121 
παῖδες, 152 
παρθενῶνες, 61, 63 
πατέρες, 150 

media, τὶ 

πέπλοι, 17, 18, 121 
πέργαμα, 58, 59 
περόναι, 36 

πηγαί, 13 

πλεύμονες, 27 
πλευραΐ, 26 

πληγαί, 83, 87, 88 
πλήγματα, 83, 88 
πλόκοι, 20, 21 

πόθοι, 100 3 
πόρπαι, 36, 121 
πραπίδες, 30 

πρόθυρα, 74, 76 
προσφάγματα, 83, 89 
πρόσωπα, 22, 23, 122 
πρόμοι, 145, 149 
(οἱ) προπέμψαντες, 145 
πρόπυλα, 76 

προχοαί, 13 

πύλαι, 74, 75 
πυλώματα, 76 

ῥέεθρα, 13 

ῥηγμῖνες, 10, II, 122 
poat, 13 

σάρκες, 17 

σατίναι, 41, 43 
σηκοί͵ 64, 66,67 
oxnvat, 60, 61, 122 
σκηνώματα, 60, 61 


σκῆπτρα, 37, 38, 39, 93, 96, 122 


σκοπιαί, 12 
στέγαι, 57; 58 
στέμματα, 20, 123 
στέρνα, 26, 123 


OF THE 
UNIVERSITY 


Greek Index. 


στέφανοι, 20, 21 
στέφη, 20, 123 
στήθη, 25, 26, 29 
στολμοί, το 

στόματα, 22, 24, 124 
σφαγαί, 85, 85, 86, 87 
σφάγια, 83, 88 
σφαγιασμοί, 83, 88 
Tayot, 145 

ταφαί, 81, 82 

| τάφοι, 80, 81, 124 


τέκνα, 152 





(οὗ) τεκόμενοι, 150 
(οἱ) τεκόντες, 150 
(οἱ ἐν) τέλει, 145 
τοκεῖς, [50 


τόξα, 32, 124 
| τόποι, II 


Tpixes, 30, 31 
τύραννοι, 145 
ὕδατα, 13, 125 
ὑμέναιοι, 97, 98, 125 
| Pdpea, 17, 19 
φάσγανα, 32, 33, 125 
| φθοραί, 89, 93 
| (ot) φίλοι, 155 

(ra) φίλτατα, 157 
| (oi) φίλτατοι, 155 
| φοναί, 83, 84 
| φόνοι, 83, 84, 85, 125 
᾿ φονεῖς, 158, 159 
| φρένες, 25, 26, 29 
| (οἱ) φύσαντες, 150 


χαῖται, 30, 31 


| χιτῶνες, 17, 19 

| xAavidia, 19 
χολαί, 30 

| χρηστήρια, 59, 60 
χῶροι, 1 
ψάμαθοι, τ5 
ὦμοι, 27, 126 





167 





Catt Aa adh one oe 
ἢ ᾿ Spee a 
δ St ay es 

Be μὴ gn mee δεν, 





eth 


“Ξ. 


ἊὮ r Nes 4 κ ἡ y ang ᾿ 5 . [ : A ou fot αν 
ΠΡ ἀν ν’ ὑτδνδας ον ἘΠ ie gs “, i » πα} - δ Ψ ae cae »ἢ ἃς i oo te 
se 3 Ν οὐ πῆς Gy aS iS 2 i pre " d 3 We ad + : > ἫΝ “ - 2 4‘ ἊΣ . 2 ane, ἀν ΝΝ ἕω 
ὧν ων, ye ἐν ἔνι Cah te rae eal a, = 5 " Εν dA’ ἃ ‘ a \, Me os U Ke be 
“ 4 ΟΝ ναι 4 J , ~ ΨΌΝ 3 i" ~ » m4 L ὼ } t ἧς Mg 4 me ut ἡ c = ἣν “ G ᾿ 
μ “Y τ a : Ἂ πε 5). πὰ i : Ὰ : 1. boo ΘΑΙ i ΤᾺ ἜΝΙ “ἜΣ Fr Ne oye eae. ns 
᾿ ( ἃ ἀκ ἡ, Ἀν ᾿ = c 4 τ κε Ὗ ‘et is ᾿ a ae. - 
Ἢ πρίν vy ai J ‘ ms 4 wy: ae n ν Fe : μι" Ivey Ψ’ a ΚΤ’ 7 - 4 Ν a ας, aa es ᾿ - - 
- Ἂς τυ Ayal ᾿ ξ Gr op a Bee anc Dalle Δ 4 = ὮΝ Re hae om =e, Be rey =. 
er, »" ᾿ na . τ 4 ᾿ 9 Wi: τ " a a! G ὡς Wy aK . i 7 oe, ς. — 2 ᾿ ἊΝ Β' 3 
we Yee »" ‘aac ἐς Ἵ νυ Ἢ Tae ‘4 ᾿ Ἁ sd, of am δι ἐς Ν pt mn ‘aI Sa τ d Ἧ ἊΣ" r 
Ἢ mot, a ey PEA % τ ε πα χὰ J An = a = E — - ey ‘er : “ we Ὸ pee a - δὲ «"ἡ a in 5 
τς - " A f δ ΚΑ a. Rate δὰ > Nyiles ν σὰ. Ὰ τ 4 Ἢ er. “aan view oe - 
7 - Ὁ ΣΟΥ ΣΡ 7 “id ἐπ a ‘ “ εἶ ree 5 PO κα > = % 
* § vee = J = Ἷ { 














